


The Longest Road

by Kitsune1978



Category: Naruto
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-10-13
Updated: 2016-01-02
Packaged: 2017-12-29 08:05:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 58
Words: 57,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1002983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitsune1978/pseuds/Kitsune1978
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chuunin exams. Gaara fights Rock Lee and Shukaku takes over. The invasion has been triggered much earlier than it was supposed to, and Gaara doesn't have a chance to fight Naruto at all. That's why he's still a psycho, and there is no one left to subjugate him since the Fourth Kazekage's been killed. Multi-chapter, in progress, AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Betareading: GelbertBlitz. Thanks a bunch!

Credits:

The plot is mine.

"Naruto", and all of its characters and recognizable locations and concepts, is created and copyrighted by Kishimoto Masashi, and owned by Shueisha Publishing Co., Ltd. and Studio Pierrot.

I'm not a native English speaker, and I have no betareader to check on my grammar and vocabulary, hence the mistakes. I apologize for them in advance.

 

o0o0o0o

 _"The longest road you're going to have to walk is from here to here. From your head to your heart. And you can't speak to the people as a leader unless you've made the return journey. From the heart back to the head._ _"_

~Dakota proverb

 

o0o0o0o

**The Longest Road**

**~Prologue~**

There were many things Rock Lee hadn't expected to see during the chūnin exam, and the boy from Sunagakure was definitely one of those things. Yes,  _things_ , because you couldn't call it human even if you wanted to.

At first, Lee hadn't noticed that anything was off the game. His opponent had glared at him with an apparent contempt, and the cold aura surrounding him could have scared Lee away if he hadn't seen such attitude day by day. Hyuuga Neji was always looking down his nose at his teammates, after all.

So Lee didn't falter nor cringe even after loads of sand had come crushing down on him and the pure, unreasonable hatred in the tiny redhead's eyes had increased beyond all imagination. Bruised and hurting, Lee stood up bravely, only to be knocked down again and again, simply unable to scratch the surface of the cold unholy mask, which seemed to hide his opponent's face.

Then Lee understood. The fight wasn't about who was going to be a chūnin any longer. The fight was about how long he would last before Sabaku no Gaara would give him a final blow. A lethal blow.

The conclusion made Lee hesitate for the first time but the redhead missed it, obviously. His head hanging and his shoulders sagging, he started whispering to himself. Lee couldn't hear the words since the whooshing sand was drowning them out but he didn't have to. Even if he had never seen it before, he recognized it immediately in his opponent's expression.

Insanity.

You can't fight it, can't reason with it, can't comprehend it. The only thing you can do is run fast before it is too late.

Unfortunately for Lee, it was too late. Not that Lee would have been eager to escape. His pride might have won with his will to live. Anyway, running away wasn't his option anymore when the clouds of sand encircling his opponent clung to the redhead's body, wrapping around him almost lovingly until they formed the strangest and the most frightening shape Lee had ever seen. The shape of a monster.

Everyone froze, shocked and speechless, and even the sand came to a halt in its moves for a few seconds, before a pandemonium rose. Lee was the first one who was hit by the monster's enormous fist, and Lee's head would have been smashed against the wall like an egg if his sensei hadn't caught him, carrying him away from the hall. In the hospital, Lee was treated by the medics, and he couldn't see what happened next. He didn't see the jōnins trying to fight the sand monster and how it repelled their attacks. He didn't see Suna ninjas emerging from their hideouts, attacking surprised villagers. He didn't see the fake Yondaime Kazekage killing Sandaime Hokage, before Jiraiya appeared and made him retreat. And finally, he didn't see Jiraiya defeating the monster before it could change to its ultimate form.

The traitors were captured easily since Otogakure didn't support their efforts as expected. It turned out that Orochimaru had his own plans inside plans, and turned his back on Suna immediately, leaving it to Konoha's tender mercies. However, Konoha didn't plan on keeping the prisoners in the village. Suna's leader was gone and without him, any treaty couldn't be signed. The prisoners were released quickly right after declaring an unconditional surrender, Shukaku's host included. Furious, he could barely take being defeated for the first time, and mentally swore an oath to take his revenge on Konoha in the future. However, the future had its own plans concerning him, and he went out of Konoha's borders completely oblivious to the fact that his journey down the longest road he would ever have to take had just started.


	2. Godaime Kazekage

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **1** **. Godaime Kazekage** **~**

The air, still holding a bit of a night chill, started warming up quickly when the sun rose, even if the shadows were still long at this early hour. Not that Godaime Kazekage would notice the rapidly increasing heat even if he would be knocked out of his reverie. After living in a desert for 35 years he simply didn't pay attention to it, especially on a day like that.

Over two weeks had passed since Suna broke the peace treaty and invaded Konoha, or rather attempted to invade. They lose completely, and the Yondaime Kazekage had gone missing since then. Only a few still hoped he would return. At first, they thought he might be a prisoner to Oto, but this hope was quickly lost, and at some point they came to a conclusion that they had to elect a new village's leader. Once decided, it was clear there was no one else more fitting for the position than Baki - the experienced ninja, one of if not the most powerful jōnin in the village, and also Sandaime Kazekage's former student.

Baki himself wasn't particularly eager to take his long since dead teacher's seat but he knew Suna's fate stood upon the edge of a knife at the moment. Loyal shinobi as he was, he simply couldn't decline the council's request. The daimyō didn't have any objections, either, so Godaime Kazekage was instated as soon as possible, reluctantly taking the responsibility for the village, and preparing to deal with the most urgent questions, with Shukaku's host at the top of the list.

Baki sighed to himself, and adjusted the fabric covering the half of his face. Sipping the water, he refused to go back to the events that brought Suna to such misery, and forced himself to focus on an upcoming meeting. True that the councilmen worked together outstandingly in a face of a disaster but they still couldn't understand that rebuilding the military power of the village was actually far beyond their reach. The number of assignments decreased almost to none, not even mentioning that Konoha wouldn't take well Suna's endeavors to regain the power it once held. For that reason, Baki decided that their only option was concentrating on an economic development rather than military one. The councilmen argued it was unprecedented that the hidden village would give up its very purpose to exist, not even mentioning the lack of natural resources in Kaze no Kuni, but they had no other choice than accepting Kazekage's plan.

But still, the most direct threat to Suna wasn't a shortage of missions or funds. Those were things Baki believed they could handle, and maybe, just maybe, even turn this situation to their advantage. Unfortunately, there was no way to handle Shukaku's jinchūriki any longer. The previous Kazekage was gone, and they could expect an utter annihilation of the village at any time if the beast suddenly decided to go on rampage, and the host wouldn't be in the mood to stop it. Of course, if he would use Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu it would be all over for him, because there was not a living soul in an entire Kaze no Kuni left, who could approach raging Shukaku, and knock its host awake. Baki knew that jinchūriki's instinct for self-preservation was strong, but on the other hand, his emotions were so unstable that nobody could predict what he would actually do when furious. For this, the council had to find a solution to this problem, and fast.

Baki took his seat at the round table, and waited for the councilmen to join him. Once they exchanged the courtesies and settled down, the debate began. Some of the elders argued that the village had already taken too much risks, and paid too high price for sealing the bijū into the jinchūriki, to simply give it all up, and eliminate him. Others said that the assassination option had much more pros than cons, especially considering the current situation. Baki listened to them, and didn't interrupt, sunk in his own thoughts. He noticed at once that all the council members carefully avoided saying Gaara's name as if they had already sentenced him. Baki didn't let himself to say that name, either. Not so long ago, he was a leader of the previous Kazekage's children team, and willing or not, he became loyal to them, even if the bond between them was weak, and never spoken of. Baki was aware that at some point Gaara began to respect him, which in Gaara's case meant that he didn't threaten to kill his team's captain, nor did he offend him in any way, like he did with his siblings.

Baki could tell the very moment it had started.

_"You're not afraid that I'll kill you?" Gaara had asked in his harsh voice._

_"I'm not afraid of dying," Baki had replied with a sardonic smile. "You know firsthand that there are worse things than death."_

That answer earned him Gaara's respect. Soon, Baki realized that apart from him there was no other human in Sunagakure, and beyond, who could say that Gaara respected them. The boy didn't even respect his own father. Of course, he hated him, and feared the man deeply, but it had nothing to do with respect. Gaara feared that his father would condemn him to death once again, only this time he would choose more effective way to achieve his goal. Now, the Yondaime Kazekage was gone, and Baki was the one to decide Gaara's fate. Deep in his heart, Baki detested the circumstances, which made him to make a decision to betray the boy, but he knew he had no other choice. The beast inside Gaara was untameable, and so was the boy. For that reason, both of them were doomed.

Not that the council would find any volunteer to take up such mission. The elders were indignant when Baki told them that but he decided they couldn't force anyone to make another assassination attempt on Gaara. The morale amongst Suna ninjas was already incredibly low, and they were pretty much aware that the mission 1023098 was in fact a suicide mission. The councilmen reluctantly agreed not to force anyone unless a volunteer would come directly to them, and Baki suggested the only option he thought they had at the moment. He decided they had to prepare a living place for Gaara and his siblings somewhere in the desert, and then ask Gaara to move there.

The elders almost laughed at the thought of asking Gaara for anything but Baki was certain he could complete this task. He knew the boy, and how to convince him. Gaara would surely agree if his siblings would go with him. Anyway, Baki needed them to watch the boy in case he tried something dangerous and unpredictable. Unfortunately, they would be first victims if Shukaku took over, but Baki could do nothing about it. Even if he was certain that Kankurō and Temari would die, Baki refused to indulge in grief over them, fully aware they were already doomed just like their youngest brother, even if they didn't do anything wrong.

**The end of chapter 1.**

**The next chapter: The message**

o0o0o0o

A/N. The dialogue between Baki and Gaara comes from an amazing fic _Dry Winds_ by ZenosParadox. I highly recommend you to read it, especially if you're a Sand sibs fan.

Mission 1023098 is a concept borrowed from another amazing Sand sibs fic _Lucky Number_ by StorymasterCaith. Kankurō and Gaara fans are particularly welcome.


	3. The message

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter 2.** **The message** **~**

Temari ran. She could run fast, and the distance she had to cross would have been easy for her, if not for the message she was carrying, the message that made her stomach tight into a knot, and her heart beat unsteadily.

She reached the village's gates, and once she entered the shadow between cliffs, she took a canteen from her pouch, and sipped the water, still running. The guards watched her with confused frowns creasing their foreheads but none of them stopped her. She didn't even notice that; her legs wanted to slow down but she forced them to go until she arrived at the entrance of the Kazekage Tower. Only then she came to a halt, and told a guard she had to see the Kazekage immediately.

She didn't wait too long for the permission to enter, and she followed the guard to the office. The Godaime Kazekage was waiting for her, settled behind the desk, on the chair which was not so long ago occupied by her father. Temari's breath was still uneven but she wasn't panting any longer, looking presentable enough to deliver the news.

"Kazekage-sama, the Yondaime Kazekage's body has been found," she blurted out quickly after greeting him properly.

Before she got into the room, she was trying a few different ways to say it, and she eventually decided it was the best way - very official so any traces of emotion wouldn't slip.

Once she had said it, the guard behind her gasped almost inaudibly. The Kazekage's eyes narrowed ever so slightly before he inclined his head.

"Tell me all the details," he commanded, his expression blank.

Temari hesitated for a second, averting her eyes momentarily.

"Gaara found him," she said with a dull voice. "In the Mouth of A Sandworm."

Baki furrowed, squeezing his chin with his thumb and index finger. Temari thought he was probably wondering what the hell Gaara was doing in a desert canyon people of Suna called Mouth of A Sandworm.

"And he could tell it was Yondaime?" the Kazekage inquired suspiciously, slowly rubbing against his chin with his index finger.

"Well, it's impossible to recognize his face," Temari explained. "But the robe is still there, and the hat, and the sandals... We didn't touch anything so we don't know if there are any personal belongings left on the body."

"We?"

"Yes. Kankurō and I."

Baki turned around, his back facing Temari, while he stared through the large round window.

"And what was Gaara's reaction?" he asked with a probing tone.

Temari really needed to swallow the bitterness she felt in her mouth but she couldn't afford it now. She took a short breath, and tried to relax, to no avail.

"I don't know," she replied frankly.

Baki didn't comment on that as if he expected such an answer.

"Suname, go and notify the medics," he said instead. "ANBU will fetch the body, and the medics have to be ready to start an autopsy soon."

The guard marched away instantly, while Temari waited, the initial numbness slowly taking over her entire body. She still couldn't believe that her father was gone. She wasn't fond of him, no. It was hard - if not impossible - to be fond of such a person. But still, he seemed to be a constant in her life, just like a desert itself. He was powerful enough to defeat Gaara single-handedly. How come he had been killed?

Baki, who had been kind of a father figure to her once, turned around again, and took his seat behind the desk. Temari watched him wearily, aware that her shoulders were slumped despite her efforts to keep them stiff. However, it didn't seem to be a matter of great importance to Baki, when he finally spoke to her.

"Temari, you and your siblings have to move out of Suna."

The girl's teal eyes widened a bit. No other sign betrayed her astonishment as she waited for the continuation.

"We have to keep Gaara away from the village in case the demon would start taking over," Baki said, and Temari nodded, expressionless. She wondered if it was a coincidence that the Kazekage decided to inform her about it on the very day the previous Kazekage's body had been found. The council must have been debating over removing Gaara from the village since Baki was instated, but still, it was suspicious that he didn't tell her about it earlier.

"There's a place being prepared for the three of you near the smallest southern oasis," Baki continued as the sudden realization hit Temari, and made her heart skip a beat.

 _They decided to sacrifice_ _me, and_ _Kankur_ _ō_ _, too_ , she told herself, still unable to contain the thought.  _Our skills, our experience, it's all meaningless whenever Gaara is concerned. It had always been that_ _way_ _._ _I shouldn't even be surprised._

Temari barely focused on the Kazekage's words, when he explained to her that he was giving Kankurō and her an A-rank mission, consisting of watching Gaara, and reporting on the changes of his mood, and in the worst case on Shukaku's emergence. It was obvious to her that the Kazekage knew what would happen if Shukaku actually was to come out. There was no way they would survive it, let alone be able to report on it. All of it together meant that the council was making up a plan how to get rid of Gaara for good, and his siblings too, most likely.

Baki finished speaking, and Temari nodded once again. She knew it would be pointless to argue, let alone to refuse openly. The sacrifices were often needed when the village was in danger, and now, their time had come to become ones.

Eventually, she was released. Hurrying to her place, she was momentarily delayed by an ANBU ninja, who handed her a small scroll, which turned out to be an extremely short message addressed to her. Furrowing, the kunoichi read it twice, knowing that the ANBU disappeared away immediately after delivering it.

_Jounin's quarters, 10 p.m._

**The end of chapter 2.**

**The next chapter: The solution**

o0o0o0o

A/N. I know there are no sandworms in Narutoverse but I love to introduce them into my fanfics whenever I can. I just have a thing for deserts, obviously xD If you don't know what sandworms are, read/watch "Dune".


	4. The solution

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **3** **.** **The solution** **~**

Baki was pacing impatiently in his office, his arms crossed on his chest, the low rumble threatening to escape his throat. He still couldn't act before he would talk to Jōseki first, but the thought that innocent people could be dying at the moment was almost unbearable. The fury was rising within the Kazekage, and he had to call for all his self-control not to order immediate assassination of Jōseki. Anything was possible, after all, if Sunagakure councilmen could stoop that low these days...

Someone knocked on the door, and Baki grabbed the doorknob, almost crushing it in his hand. He jerked the door open, and a chūnin, who was standing on the other side of the door, jumped back, apparently scared of the Kazekage's fuming expression.

"Go away. I'm busy now," Baki commanded, and slammed the door. He stood there, breathing rapidly, as the vein pulsed on his temple. He shouldn't treat his subordinates that way but he was partly justified. He hadn't felt so much rage in years.

Another knocking, quieter this time, and the councilman entered the office, at last. Fortunately, his expression wasn't as smug as usual, when he greeted Baki.

"Kazekage-sama, you have called me."

"Of course I have," Baki growled. "Explain yourself immediately."

Jōseki put a finger against his lips, while he did what looked like weighing his options.

"There was no another satisfying solution suggested," he said at last.

"Satisfying solution?" the Kazekage spat. "This term does not apply to what you did, either!"

"The monster's lust for blood needs to be satiated."

Baki squeezed the bridge of his nose with two fingers.

"What you did is considered a treason," he stated almost calmly. "We stand upon a brink of destruction, and now this."

Jōseki became visibly nervous but he refused to give up.

"I was aware you would never agree to that, Kazekage-sama. That's why I assigned that 'mission' to the siblings in secret."

"And now you're going to revoke it," Baki ordered in a tone of finality. "Or you'll be announced a traitor."

The councilman pursed his lips.

"I will," he said reluctantly. "But the monster—"

"You can satiate the beast's bloodlust with some random victims but with Gaara it's a different story," Baki interrupted with a snarl. "You've sacrificed innocent people for nothing."

"I believe it may do some good to the village if we get rid of cripples, spongers, and neurotics," Jōseki drawled. "The times are tough. We can't afford to take pity on anyone."

Baki shook his head. The discussion was taking them nowhere. Jōseki was since long known as heartless. Loyal, too, and great politician, but heartless first. His line of reasoning was exactly the same as the previous Kazekage's.  _The times are tough. We can't afford to take pity on anyone._ _Even children. Even infants._

That way, Gaara was born.  _Made,_ Baki thought.  _Created. Because the times were tough._

"I understand why you did what you did," he admitted. "But I still deem it utterly wrong. You will call Temari..." he hesitated. "No," he said. "I will go to them. I will deliver the solution."

**The end of chapter 3.**

**The next chapter: The food**

o0o0o0o

Jōseki is always a bad guy in my fanfics. I don't know why xD *glance at narutowiki* "He wasn't comfortable with Gaara's appointment to Kazekage from the beginning, seeing him as little more than a failed and highly dangerous experiment. When the Kazekage was kidnapped by the Akatsuki, he mused that it might have been for the best and wanted to quickly elect a new Kazekage." *reading mode off* Ha, I knew there was something wrong with him!

And, did you know that jōseki are _studied sequences of moves in the corner areas of the Go board, for which the result is considered_ _balanced_ _for both black and white sides._ (source: Wikipedia) Well, that only means that Jōseki doesn't deserve his name!


	5. The visit

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **4.** **The** **visit** **~**

Temari was suspicious. Whatever was going on, it couldn't be good, considering that the Kazekage himself, escorted only by a few ANBU guards, came to them. No one else visited this gods forsaken place, let alone brought them food. Was Baki pitying Kankurō and her? Or maybe it was the opposite? Maybe he came to bid them farewell?

Of course, she didn't let any of her doubts out, when she reported on the mission she was assigned to. Yes, Gaara seemed to be greatly disturbed since Yondaime's funeral. No, there was no sign of Shukaku yet. The last full moon didn't trigger anything unwelcome. Gaara was morbid, and scathing. That's all.

The Kazekage didn't seem to be surprised. Temari assumed he had received a report already from ANBU, who were undoubtedly watching this place from afar. So, why did he come here?

Her heart nearly stopped at the sudden thought that he came to finish them at last. The new era would start for Sunagakure, without any remnants of the past haunting the villagers. Was it the council's decision?

Several minutes passed, and the guests didn't attack her. Baki told her that he had to go, and went away quickly, followed by his guards. Temari was slightly relieved but the food they left was still suspicious to her. They wouldn't probably poison it because Kankurō would recognize that it was seasoned with death. So, if they used a poison, it must have been a new invention, most likely kept secret from anyone. Or maybe the food was pretty harmful, despite Temari's suspicions.

The kunoichi decided to follow the usual procedure. She took a very small bite, spread it on her tongue, and waited for a few minutes. Nothing happened though, and she felt normal. There was no any weird taste in her mouth, therefore she switched to the second stage. She swallowed the food she had taken into her mouth, and waited for an hour. Still no sign of poison but she knew she must be careful. She took a bite a bit larger than the previous one, chewed on it, and swallowed. Pushing away the food, she left the place, only to find out Kankurō standing there, his eyes focused on the northern horizon.

"What did they want?" he asked, his eyes narrowed.

"The Kazekage brought the food, and demanded the report on Gaara," she explained.

"The food?" Kankurō hissed, turning towards his sister immediately.

She responded with a nod.

"It doesn't seem to be poisoned but you better check on it."

The puppeteer went inside, and tasted the food, following the same procedure.

"Delicious, indeed," he commented, chewing. "Actually, I don't sense any poison in it. That's why we need to be extra careful. It would be the best to throw the package away."

"If we could only afford it." Temari sighed. "I have just eaten a larger bite. We'll see what happens."

Kankurō glared at her as if he was going to chide her.

"Standard procedure says: Wait for three hours. We're going to wait for twice as long," she assured him, unwilling to argue. The puppeteer pursed his lips as if ready to protest but then he gave up.

"Do not strain yourself," he ordered in a firm tone. "It would make eventual poison metabolize faster."

"Okay, daddy, I will sit around and do nothing for the next six hours," she joked but her eyes were serious. "What about antidotes?"

"I will try to make one if needed but I'm short—" Kankurō broke off, drawing the sharp breath in. Temari didn't even have to turn away to know what was the reason of his reaction. The aggressive surge of chakra, and the suffocating aura of murderous intent, all of it made her trained ninja senses scream that their nemesis appeared; their youngest sibling finally decided to join them.

**The end of chapter 4.**

**The next chapter: The watch**


	6. The watch

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **5.** **The watch** **~**

There were only a few things Temari was truly afraid of, and the prospect of losing Kankurō was on the top of the list. It terrified her even more than the possibility of her own death.

The kunoichi stroked her brother's shaking arms, and swallowed, begging inwardly that he wouldn't die. The puppeteer lay on his side, his back facing her, his face buried in the sheets so she wouldn't see his expression. He assured her the tremors and pain would stop soon, but it seemed to her that it lasted for ever, and she could hardly bear it.

The food the Kazekage had brought before was poisoned, after all. Temari wondered if it was Chiyo-baasama who helped the medics with it because the way it was made was unexpected, to say the least. The food was mixed with a poison and an antidote altogether. An antidote was made to be metabolized first so the poison would start working twelve hours after it had been digested. Kankurō did recognize the symptoms, and he prepared an antidote, but he didn't have enough particular ingredients to make two full doses. He forced Temari to take the remedy, and the worst of her symptoms faded relatively fast. She still felt absolutely awful but she knew she wouldn't die. Besides, it was nothing in comparison to Kankurō's suffering. He didn't take a proper amount of an antidote, plus his symptoms were already raging when he finally did. He insisted that he had developed immunity to most of the poisons, and he would be fine, but Temari was still worried. Unfortunately, all she could do was wait.

Alone, she waited in silence, which was disrupted only by Kankurō's wheezing breaths and sporadic moans. Gaara wasn't there with them, and she was truly grateful for it. Not to Gaara, no. She was grateful to the fate, or the nameless gods taking care of her, even if she couldn't know if they really existed or not. She was grateful, because if there was something that could make this night even more horrible, it would be her younger brother's ominous, quiet presence behind her back. She noticed he had been watching her recently, or rather staring at her, and she hoped it didn't mean she was doomed. But now, Gaara wasn't there, and all her thoughts were focused on the weak, shivering body in front of her, barely resembling the arrogant, spiteful brat Kankurō had been just several hours ago.

Gaara wasn't suffering because he didn't eat the food. Once they told him it could be poisoned, he apparently decided he wouldn't take a bite. Actually, Temari wondered for the hundredth time where and how Gaara was getting the food. Since she could remember he had been rarely eating meals at their father's place, occasionally making her think that he was really feeding on his victims blood and flesh.

"Water," Kankurō croaked, interrupting her musings, and she jumped to her feet, soaking the piece of linen in the water, and squeezing it so the water would drip into his mouth. The puppeteer swallowed it greedily, and lay still on his back, his eyes closed. Temari took the opportunity to wipe the sweat from his brow with another piece of cloth, both of them ignoring the purple face paint staining the fabric, and spreading all over Kankurō's face.

"Temari," the puppeteer breathed unexpectedly, his voice faint. The kunoichi gasped, and grasped his hand instinctively, which she wouldn't have done in other circumstances.

"Kankurō! Are you feeling better?" she exclaimed, squeezing his flabby palm with her own fingers.

"Not... exactly..." he said. "Been... much better..."

Temari sniffed but no tear dared to escape her eyes.

"Listen, T—Temari," he continued. "You have to go... to the village."

"Now?" she asked, flabbergasted. "In the middle of the night?"

"Night?" Kankurō repeated groggily. "Thought... it's going to be dawn... soon..."

"Not yet," Temari said. "Time always goes slow when you're in pain."

"Freaking... right," he agreed. "I need milk... A lot of it. And..." He coughed slightly. "Dandelion... juniper seeds extract... tomoshiri grass... and birch leaves. But... what is more important... you have to tell Baki what happened..."

Temari was sure Baki knew pretty well what happened but Kankurō was right, anyway. They needed to see for themselves if the Kazekage really decided to kill them, and if he did, they would have to carefully think of what to do next.

"I'll go to the village in the morning only if you're feeling better," she warned, releasing his hand. "I won't leave you alone."

"But... we're already alone, Temari..." Kankurō mumbled, rolling to his side with a moan. The kunoichi froze with her mouth partly open, but she didn't have any answer to that.

"Freaking right," she agreed at last, sighing heavily. "Now, rest. I need you."

The silence was the only response to her quiet admission.

**The end of chapter 5.**

**The next chapter: The tester**


	7. The tester

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~** **Chapter** **6** **.** **The tester** **~**

Temari flinched, and snapped her head up. She had fallen asleep, somehow, during her night watch over Kankurō, and now something shook her out of the restless slumber, even if there was no one within her sight. For an instant, she thought she had sensed Gaara's chakra, but then it was swiftly gone, leaving her confused. She decided she would go out, and check on the vicinity, but she had to look after Kankurō first.

The puppeteer seemed to be asleep, either, even though his face was still contorted in pain, and he wouldn't get much rest that way. The purple paint dried on his lips, making them look like they belonged to a dead man - a drowned man - and Temari shivered with premonition.

She still wasn't sure if she ought to leave her brother to Gaara's tender mercies but she felt she didn't have any other choice.Actually, it had been a long time since she thought of Gaara as her brother for the last time.She could still recall the vague memory of her childish happiness at the time when she was told she was going to have another younger sibling but nowto herKankurō was her brother, and Gaara was... just Gaara. Temari was certain Gaara wouldn't give a damn even if he knew about it. He definitely didn't treat them the way the youngest brothers usually treat their older siblings, and he certainly wouldn't help Kankurō with anything. That was why Temari was stillin doubt if she should leave.

She decided she would at least go outside, and seek for the source of the previous disturbance in the air. She exited the hut, and to her utter astonishment she saw a girl crouching next to the wall, apparently seeking a shelter from the blazing rays of an early sun. The sight was so unexpected that Temari simply froze, and stared at the girl, as the pair of the two large onyx eyes stared back at her with an unconcealed terror. After a few minutes of staring Temari looked around carefully but there was no Gaara within her sight so her gaze returned to the girl, whose lips were visibly quivering as if she was about to burst into tears.

"Who are you?" Temari asked, her voice weird in her ears, and she frowned, because the girl seemed to look familiar to her, somehow, even if Temari couldn't exactly recall where or when she had seen her.

The girl didn't respond, onlybegan to cry quietly, pressing her fists against her closed eyelids. Temari stepped up to her, giving her a probing pat on the shoulder, which made the girl flinch.

"I'm not going to hurt you," the kunoichi assured the younger girl. "Are you lost?"

The girl wept even more desperately, and Temari shook her arm gently.

"I will help you if you tell me who you are and what are you doing here," she said sympathetically but also a little impatiently. "It's not safe here so better pull yourself together quickly."

The girl pulled her hands back from her face, glancing at Temari with an obvious shock.

"Aren't you going... to poison me?" she whispered in a trembling voice.

It was Temari's turn to gape at the stranger with shock.

"Poison you? Why would I do that?" she stuttered, briefly wondering if she didn't have sunstroke hallucinations.

The girl hunched, and gazed around cautiously.

"He said you would," she revealed in a quiet, fearful tone. "He said I was going to test the food for poison."

Temari thought she already knew who the girl was talking about but she decided she would ask about it nonetheless.

"He? Who do you mean?"

The girl swallowed hard, her voice was just above the whisper.

"The monster."

**The end of chapter 6.**

**The next chapter: The delay**


	8. The delay

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **7.** **The delay** **~**

Her thoughts racing, Temari quickened her pace. She had to get to the village as fast as she could, and hopefully go back even faster. Kankurō was left alone with the girl, who promised to take care of him. Temari warned the girl - Matsuri was her name - not to hurt him if she didn't want to die a slow, painful death. Actually, the girl didn't look like she was able to hurt a fly, but it's always better to state certain things bluntly. Matsuri was positively white after the warning, and she swore to do her best to help Kankurō during Temari's hopefully short absence.

Temari wouldn't leave her brother in the stranger's hands if not for the whole story the girl had told them both. According to her words, she had been kidnapped from her house, and left in the desert without any reason. She had no parents, no family at all, so nobody would care if she disappeared. She had been an Academy student for a time being, but they kicked her out because she couldn't continue the ninja training due to her fear of weapons, and probably violence in general. A failed existence, one could say. She insisted she had no idea why they carried her off. The only thing she knew was that she had been asleep in her bed, and when she woke up from the deep, dreamless slumber, with her head aching badly, she found herself in the middle of the desert. Terrified, she fought the ties binding her hands and ankles, to no avail. Finally, she panicked and began to scream, only to find out that the noises lured the monster.

Temari clenched her fists with anger. If it was not for Gaara's whim, the girl would be dead by now. Another innocent victim, actually a civilian. Not that Gaara would care that he was killing innocent people. It wouldn't be much difference to him. However, with Temari it was a different story. As a captain of her team, she had been assigned a secret mission from one of the councilmen. He said that there were numerous spies trying to infiltrate Suna because of its increasing weakness. Other countries and hidden villages sought a way to destroy Suna. Once caught, the spies were interrogated, and sentenced to death by Gaara's hands. Temari didn't particularly like such a mission but in the end it was Gaara who was to deal with the spies, and crush them with his sand. For that, Temari didn't argue nor ask any questions.

Until now.

Matsuri's story cast a new light on so-called mission. Temari simply couldn't believe that the council would throw an orphan's life away for some stupid reason, while they were supposed to protect it. She had known before that Jōseki was a cruel, heartless bastard, but this? It was just too much. He might be a councilman and Temari might be a ninja but she wouldn't participate in murdering innocent people for a reason she didn't even know, period.

She was going to demand explanations. Only she doubted anyone would give them to her. She wasn't even certain she would escape the village unscathed after she would ask the Kazekage about the sacrifices he decided to make. But still, she couldn't just leave it as it was...

Even lost in her thoughts, the kunoichi wouldn't overlook the change in the air. Immediately developing the goosebumps, she instinctively came to a halt, fighting the urge to raise her hands in a defensive gesture, when Gaara blocked her way.

"H—hey Gaara," she greeted him, forcing a smile onto her lips in a parody of a sibling fondness. "What is it?"

Of course, he didn't reply, scrutinizing her until she frowned slightly.

"What is it?" she repeated, careful to erase any impatience from her voice because she knew it would piss him off if he realized she was being impatient with him. "Do you want anything?"

He nodded slowly, his look almost thoughtful, when he stepped up closer. Temari sighed mentally, and waited. He went even closer, making her shift uncomfortably when he entered her personal space.

"I was wondering," he uttered quietly, glancing at her from under his eyelashes. On anyone else that look might seem shy but Gaara wasn't anyone else.

Temari swallowed when she realized he was in one of those moods she hated the most. Even if he addressed her, he didn't actually talk to her. He was talking to himself, just as usual. Only this time he wanted to do that in front of an audience. Damn him to the deepest hell - as if he already wasn't - for choosing this particular morning to pester her.

"Yes?" she probed, trying to look interested but not prying. Caring but not possessive. Hell if she knew that she managed not to anger him but she couldn't stay silent, either, because it would annoy him even more. "You were wondering...?"

"Where is it coming from?" he growled lowly, his eyes narrowing, when he grabbed the top of her shirt. "Are you doing this to me?"

Temari broke out in a cold sweat. Her hands trembling, and her mind blurred for an instant with a pure terror, she asked herself if she was out of luck, finally. Gaara spared the girl but what if he was going to take his sister's life instead?

 _I don't know what you're talking about,_  she wanted to say, only she couldn't. One could never admit to Gaara they didn't knew what he was talking about. That is, if they wanted to survive.

"I'm not... doing anything to you," she said hesitantly because she couldn't make up any better answer at the moment. Gaara's expression instantly changed, from calm and pensive to ominous and hateful. He gripped her shirt tighter, and she had to lean forward a bit, cringing inwardly at the unwelcome closeness of that... something. But still, she didn't try to fight his grasp off. Until she didn't act aggressive, there was still a hope for her. At least she hoped so.

"Temari..." he seethed, seizing her arm with his other hand, and tugging at her shirt vehemently, as if he wanted to rip it apart. "You..."

Temari's heart almost leapt out from her chest as the fabric burst with the horrible noise. Immediately, she shoved Gaara away, stumbling backwards yet not losing her balance.

"What are you...?" she blurted out, one of her palms keeping her torn shirt together, the other sneaking back instinctively till she felt the folds of her fan under her fingertips. "What the hell do you think you're doing? You can't do that!"

Gaara hissed under his breath, watching his wrists curiously. Temari didn't realize at first what it was that caught his interest but then it came to her that the sand didn't react to her doings. It meant it must have realized her intention was not to hurt Gaara, not even for an instant. And Gaara realized it, too. His gaze slowly wandered to her face, then it dropped to her hand, which was still tightly holding on her ruined shirt. Temari took a few steps back, her hand stuck firmly to her fan even if she didn't channel her chakra through it yet.

"i am your sister," she admonished him but the effect was lost because her voice broke during the stupid, pointless explanation. Sister or not, he couldn't do that to anyone. "You can't do that," she repeated.

The redhead furrowed slightly, clenching his fists reflexively, and then relaxing them.

"You are... what?" he murmured indifferently, walking towards her.

"You sister," she repeated before she used Shunshin no Jutsu. She stopped between the high dunes, her fan ready, its three moons clearly visible, while she prepared to release the best and the last Ōkamaitachi in her life. Her heart hammered wildly, almost choking her, when she thought that she was so dead now. She did more forbidden things during the last few minutes than she did in her entire life. First, she pushed Gaara away, and if it wasn't bad enough, she yelled at him. She yelled at Sabaku no Gaara!

 _What the hell do you think_ _you're doing_ _?_ _You can't do that!_  Those were words one should never utter to him, at least if they wanted to live longer than a few minutes.

Yes, she was so very dead.

 **The end of chapter** **7** **.**

**The next chapter: The fate**


	9. The fate

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **8.** **The fate** **~**

The desert air had never seemed to be so suffocating to Temari before. She walked and walked, her neck and arms tensed so strongly that the muscles formed a slight bulge at the nape of her neck. She expected to be attacked at any time, the wave of sand coming to suck the blood from her body, and crush her bones until there would be no trace that she had ever existed. Only, there was no attack, still. And she didn't even know if she was relieved, or even more terrified with it.

After she teleported away from Gaara, she waited for him to follow her. She didn't exactly know what he wanted from her but she felt it couldn't be anything good. She was frozen with horror at the thought she would be forced to fight him. However, she decided that she wouldn't beg if it would come to that.

As it turned out, she had never had to beg because Gaara didn't show up. Temari was sure he could easily trace her, and she wondered what was the reason for his delay. Did he suddenly decide he would temporarily leave her alone? After all, they were living together in the middle of nowhere, and he could finish what he had started whenever he wanted. Was it some kind of a sick game, maybe? What if he was trying to lull her into a false sense of security, and attack her when she wouldn't expect it? Or maybe - and it was the most terrifying prospect - he went back to the hut? Temari shuddered at the thought what she would find there once she returned, and she rushed back towards the hut instinctively. Soon, she came to a halt, and weighed her options. Even if Gaara decided to vent his anger on Kankurō, Temari knew that she wouldn't be able to stop him. Both of them couldn't fight Gaara equally even if they were perfectly fine - and Kankurō was nothing but fine at the moment. So, Temari could only hope it was not the case. It seemed that the best what she could do was to continue her current mission, and she did, although she didn't feel relieved as usual when the village's gates came to her sight. She knew that she was an unwelcome stranger there, the tool that had been chosen to be thrown away. There was no connection between the village and her anymore. But still, there were a few ninjas who greeted her on the streets, and a few Academy students who asked her questions if she would start teaching them again. Temari put out the burning pain in her chest with her will and smiled to the children, kindly explaining to them she wouldn't be able to instruct them, yet, because she had to go on a mission.

"I will ask grandfather to release you from a mission!" one of the boys promised. His grandfather was a councilman, and Temari was certain the old man wouldn't be quite happy if he found out that his grandson was eager to have her as his teacher.

"I'm sure that he will listen to you," she commented with a light sneer, and left the students behind, for the more difficult task needed her close attention.

She entered the Kazekage Tower, immediately stopped by ANBU guards. Calmly, she explained she had to see the Kazekage on an urgent matter. Soon, they escorted her to the office, where Baki was seated behind his desk.

"Kazekage-sama," she greeted him with a nod, watching him carefully. Of course, he didn't show any sign of surprise, just as if her sudden appearance was pretty much normal, and even expected. She noticed that he glanced at her bandaged chest. It must have looked weird but it was the only way she could make her torn shirt stick together.

"Temari," he replied gravely, steepling his fingers and touching his lips with his fingertips. "What can I do for you?"

The question astonished her and made her instantly wary because she would never expect it during such a conversation. It invited her to speak openly to him, to let out her concerns, and she was aware that she couldn't afford that.

"I came to report," she said cautiously. "Gaara has grown distinctly agitated lately."

The Kazekage's shoulders rose a bit with a sigh.

"He even went as far as to assault me," she continued reluctantly, momentarily peeking down to catch a glimpse of the torn fabric, sticking out from under the bandages.

Baki pursed his lips, and pulled himself to a standing position. He went past his desk, approaching her.

"And what do you think had caused this fit?" he inquired, looking down at her.

Temari hesitated.

"I'm..." She bit her lip for an instant. "I don't know," she corrected, because she didn't know, in fact. Of course, she had her suspicions, but she wasn't too eager to tell the Kazekage what she really thought on the matter.

Baki's eyes pierced through her.

"Did he say something?" he pressed.

"Yes, although it made no sense at all. He said that he was wondering where it was coming from, and he asked if it was me who was doing this to him... whatever it was," Temari said, and the Kazekage's eyes moved away from her face.

"Indeed," he murmured, more to himself than to her, and went away, towards his desk, where he took his seat again. "Obviously, he's growing more and more unstable. Am I correct?" he asked with a hard voice.

 _The decision has been made_ , Temari thought, as a lump grew in the back of her throat, forcing her to clear it a few times.  _What_ _did he decide_ _?_

"He's been worse before," she said weakly as if trying to defend her youngest sibling.

"True but we had Yondaime Kazekage with us then," Baki reminded her. "Gaara's existence has become even greater threat to us... All of us," he emphasized, slanting a meaningful glance at Temari's chest.

"Is this why you tried to poison us?" she asked bluntly for she had enough of playing hide-and-seek. "You decided to get rid of us? All of us?" she repeated his own words in a mocking tone.

Baki's eyes bore into hers, and she was surprised to see sympathy in them.

"I was trying to spare you even worst fate," he admitted quietly. "I always seem to underestimate you, though. I'm sorry."

Temari tried to swallow but she couldn't. Her throat refused to work properly, and she licked her suddenly dry lips. She even forgot she was going to ask the Kazekage about the mission Jōseki had given to her. Her world was now reduced to those three mysterious and frightening words Baki had uttered.

_Even worst fate._

And what could that be?

 **The end of chapter** **8** **.**

**The next chapter: The decision**


	10. The decision

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **9.** **The decision** **~**

The monster in a human form was sitting high on a cliff in the desert. Nobody knew why this canyon had been named Mouth of A Sandworm. People of Suna only knew it was a wasteland, a place avoided by everyone, where the desert's peaceful, soft outlines were replaced with strange, odious shapes of slowly eroding rocks, and the wind howled like the lost souls tormented in Shinigami's stomach.

In other words, a perfect place for a monster.

Nobody knew why the monster had been named Gaara. Anyone who could explain it had been dead by then. The monster accepted his name because he had no other choice but he detested it deeply. It was always a reminder of how his life exactly was; just learning how to accept the things he hated.

And now Gaara had to make a decision to accept another thing he hated.

He was mad at the village but it didn't particularly matter. He could try to destroy them all but since his father's death Gaara's greatest and the most terrifying weapon, his Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu, had become completely useless. If he would use it, there would be no one who would knock him out of it. So, he had no other choice than to listen to his siblings' advice. He had to disappear.

He was sure that they were relieved to get rid of him at last, Temari in particular. Since the morning, the new look of wariness and apprehension appeared in her eyes. She had changed the clothes he had torn but she couldn't erase the memory. Gaara wondered if she knew what actually happened. Most likely, not. He didn't even know it himself. He only knew that he wanted something from her. At first, he had thought it was about blood. But then he realized that it wasn't. It was about something else, and he still couldn't pinpoint it.

Temari's reaction to his assault had utterly surprised him. There had been a fear in her expression, yes, but it hadn't been the kind of fear he was used to. And then, she had yelled at him just as if she forgot for an instant who he was. It had been very interesting. And very annoying. After that, she had teleported away, and he would follow her instantly if he hadn't been confused.

Temari had grabbed his wrists and pushed him away, and the sand hadn't reacted. Well, it had rolled and rippled a bit later at Gaara's conscious effort but the first automatic reaction hadn't occurred, and it had confused Gaara enough to leave Temari alone for a time being.

The confusion didn't last long, though. Gaara disliked being confused. The confusion meant that something happened that he couldn't comprehend, and his usual reaction to things he couldn't comprehend was fury. That incident hadn't been different.

He had spied on Temari with his Daisan no Me, and he had discovered that she had been hurrying to the village, most likely to see the Kazekage. Gaara had decided to wait for her return, and see what news she would bring. He had been angry with her, yes, but he knew how to be patient either. The desert he got his nickname after showed him how to be patient. It was calm and deceptively safe until the dust storm would come unexpectedly, blanketing the sky and ripping the skin off the flesh, and the flesh off the bones...

His siblings hadn't sensed his presence when he had approached the hut, which meant they had been greatly disturbed, focused on something else, or perhaps his skills had simply improved. As it turned out, Temari had gone to the village to inform the Kazekage about the poisoning attempt, only to find out that he knew about it. It had been his last pathetic effort to silence them for ever before he would give a very special mission to Temari and Kankurō. The mission 1023098.

Gaara's features had twisted ugly at the mentioning of that particular mission. His siblings had gone silent after the mission number had been spoken aloud, as if there had been nothing left to be said.

 _I can't do that_ , Temari had admitted at last, resigned.  _I can't kill Gaara._

The redhead snorted to himself at the memory. Of course she couldn't kill him even if she tried it a hundred times, which she didn't, of course. She was annoying but still not stupid.

Kankurō hadn't commented on her words as if knowing that there had been a deeper meaning to them, apart from an obvious truth. Gaara had been curious what the puppeteer would say. Would he get sentimental, either? Would he prove himself to be a pathetic coward, wallowing in a self-pity over the mission including murdering his own oh-so-beloved little brother?

 _What do we do, then?_  Kankurō had inquired, his voice still weak even after taking a proper dose of an antidote. Gaara had smiled with a dangerous half-smile, a corner of his mouth twitching to bare his teeth. That sly dolls-loving brat, always getting straight to business, not letting any emotion slip. But still, the most nagging question had remained. What would they do?

 _We will tell him_ , Temari had replied, and Gaara had growled to himself, disappointed. Obviously, they had already given up. So annoying.

He had decided to reveal his presence, entering the hut, promptly taking the scene in. Kankurō had been lying on his side, propped on his elbow, and Temari had been seated on the floor in front of him. The girl Gaara had dragged there before had been hiding in the corner, as if trying to melt into the wall. At the sound of his footsteps, she had cringed in a futile hope she would stay unnoticed. His siblings had sensed him a little bit earlier, obviously, so they hadn't been surprised but they still had been far from comfortable about what they had to do.

 _Gaara_ , Temari had said, her voice forcibly placid.  _We need to speak to you._

And they did. They had said the truth openly, and he had taunted them. They had told him to leave the country, and he had laughed at them. They had even said they didn't want to kill him because he was still their brother. It had angered him, and he had threatened to kill them, only to get even more annoying reply from Temari.  _Just do that. We won't fight you._

Both of them pathetic and useless.

Gaara had decided he wouldn't kill someone who wouldn't even try to fight. For that, he had just left the hut, going towards the canyon where he could carefully weigh his options. He disliked the prospect of becoming a nukenin because he needed someone to give him purpose, even if he didn't realize it at all. However, it seemed he didn't have other choice than abandoning the village since the council decided his existence wasn't necessary anymore.

With an old rage boiling inside his chest, the redhead promised he would return someday, and crush them to dust. Or sand rather. He would wait till they felt secure and happy, and then he would strike. The image brought a wolfish grin upon his mouth though it vanished quickly when he jumped off the rocks and headed to the west in a leisure pace.

 **The end of chapter** **9.**

**The next chapter: The hope**


	11. The hope & The homecoming

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **10.** **The hope** **~**

It's been ten days since Gaara showed up in the hut for the last time, and Temari wondered if he was gone for good. Actually, she had no idea if he would listen to them, or he would just come back one day to wipe them off. Whatever he would do, they had to inform the Kazekage. Kankurō agreed with her on that, and she ended up walking up and down the sand dunes again, dragging herself towards the village which she learned to detest. She didn't want to think about how Gaara must have felt about Suna but those unwelcome thoughts were still there, at the back of her mind. She could understand him better, now, when even the very sight of the cliffs protecting the village sparked an anger in her heart. She wasn't welcome there. She didn't belong there anymore. She was pushed away after everything she had done as a ninja for the village's sake.

_Just like Gaara._

Temari ground her teeth, and told herself to calm down. She couldn't afford facing the Kazekage while being furious like that. He would suspect something. It was bad enough she had to lie to him, and she knew he was good at recognizing a lie once he heard one. But still, there was a hope that he would let them into the village again, if he would confirm that Gaara was truly gone.

Clinging to that hope, Temari went to the Kazekage's office, and reported on her youngest brother's absence. Baki was suspicious, just like she thought he would be. Apparently, he didn't believe her when she told him that she had never admitted to Gaara that she and Kankurō were assigned to the mission 1023098. However, Baki didn't accuse her of the treason, at least not openly. Maybe he was just relieved he got rid of the problem. Or maybe he was secretly glad that Gaara disappeared while his siblings survived.

Temari knew she would never know an answer to those questions. She thought she had to tell the Kazekage about the girl Gaara had spared but she still couldn't bring herself to do that. Instead, she asked about spies. Who would be the one to finish them once Gaara was gone?

"It's not your problem," Baki admonished her. "We're going to take care of it."

Temari nodded slowly, while he crossed his arms over his chest, and instructed her to go back to the hut. She was supposed to wait there together with Kankurō for the next two weeks. If Gaara didn't come back, still, his siblings would be allowed to live in the village again. That was Baki's final order.

Temari wasn't quite sure if she was happy about it. She knew that even if she would be allowed to return, Sunagakure would never be as it had been before. But still, she had no other choice than to obey, because leaving the village would mean becoming a nukenin, and she didn't want to live such a life. At least she could find comfort in the thought that Kankurō was still by her side, because without him she would be lost.

It took her four hours to get to the village, and then she had to walk for another four hours until she reached the hut. Cautiously, she sneaked closer but Gaara wasn't anywhere in her sight. Instead, Matsuri went out from the hut, tripping towards the well, her small frame encircled by the red halo from the sunset glow. Temari watched the girl for a few minutes before she approached the hut and went inside.

Kankurō was seated on the floor, one of his puppets lying in front of him. He slanted a glance at his sister, and resumed working.

"How did it go?" he inquired, his eyes sticking to the puppet as his hands manipulated it carefully.

"Quite as expected," Temari replied with a sigh, taking her fan off and settling herself by the wall. "We have to wait for the next two weeks. If Gaara won't appear, we're going back to the village."

"What about spies? Do we have to take care of them in Gaara's stead?"

Temari hesitated.

"Actually—"

"They were not spies," the puppeteer finished.

Both of the siblings looked at each other in silence.

"We've known for a long time that taking Kazekage position strips people of their morality," Kankurō remarked dryly.

"It was Jōseki who assigned the mission," Temari reminded him.

"Do you think he would have done it without Baki's permission? He would be announced a traitor."

"I'm not so sure."

Kankurō pondered over her words in silence.

"I'm only sure Baki is not the person we once knew," Temari continued, slowly relaxing against the wall. She threw her head back and let out a long breath. "And Gaara... Gaara was killing innocent people."

"Not that it makes any difference to him," Kankurō commented grimly.

"But it does make a difference to me."

"I know."

The two went silent again, watching Matsuri who trudged into the hut, carrying the bucket. Yes, the girl was the ultimate proof of the council's abominable cruelty. Temari assumed that Jōseki had decided to keep Gaara occupied with killing people chosen by elders. Better that than let him wander down the streets and murder random ninjas.

Ignorant, old scoundrels! They knew nothing about her youngest brother! Slaughtering so-called spies could satisfy Shukaku's bloodthirst but definitely not Gaara's, and Temari knew Baki was aware of that, either. That was why she believed he didn't initially know about Jōseki's messing. After he found out about it -  _if_  he found out - he most likely ordered the councilman to stop. Obviously, they had come to an agreement to poison Gaara and his siblings. The plan had failed but there was still another option up their sleeve; the mission 1023098. This or either way, Temari, Kankurō, and Gaara weren't supposed to survive. But now, when Gaara was gone, could it be there was still a hope for the two?

 **The end of chapter** **10.**

**The next chapter: The homecoming**

o0o0o0o

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**Chapter** **1** **1.** **The h** **omecoming**

Matsuri didn't want to go back to the village. After she had been kidnapped and left in the middle of the desert, her trusting nature had been put to the hard test. She knew somehow that she wasn't supposed to survive. It was so hard to embrace because Matsuri couldn't find any fault in herself, any reason for such malice. Who did that to her, and why? What did they exactly want?

She asked herself those questions constantly, especially now, when the siblings told her they would take her back to the village. Matsuri kind of got used to living with them in the meager hut. Since her parents died she had never had much, and she didn't need much. Her room in the village wasn't particularly cosy, either. Actually, she didn't miss it at all, let alone the village. That was why she protested vehemently against returning.

"But you can't stay here any longer," Temari argued. "In two weeks we'll be going back, too."

"Then why can't I stay for two weeks longer?" Matsuri implored. "I will return with you."

Kankurō growled impatiently. The sound was quiet but distinctive and Matsuri flinched a bit, even more anxious.

"There's no way you could stay," he announced. "We're on the mission here, and you're not even a ninja."

"But I'm not a bother! Temari-san, you said it yourself! I'm not a bother at all!"

"That's right, Matsuri," Temari sighed. "You're quiet, diligent, and moderate. You're a good companion, Matsuri. But this is about your safety. We have to wait here for Gaara's return. When he returns -  _if_  he returns - he'll be in the most awful mood of all, most likely. There could be a fight—"

"Temari," Kankurō warned in a low voice. Matsuri's gaze snapped at him but he didn't speak again.

"And what makes you think the village is a safe place for me?" the girl spat, and turned on her heel, running out of the room. Sniffling and wiping the tears away with her fist, she crossed a few dunes, and threw herself on the sand, sobbing for her miserable life. Why everything had to be so unfair? She thought she hadfinally met people who cared about her. She knew she could never befriend them but it seemed that they liked her if ever so slightly. She clung to them desperately because her loneliness cried for someone - for  _anyone_  - to dispel it. And now they basically told her that they didn't care.

The sand rippled under somebody's feet, and the warm hand touched Matsuri's shoulder.

"Get up," Temari said, her voice tinted with sympathy. "We both know you have no choice."

Matsuri rose to her feet without even trying to hide the wet streaks on her cheeks. Quietly, she followed the siblings, wondering if there was anyone somewhere there, in this vast world, who would ever care.

The three traveled in silence until Matsuri decided her legs wouldn't make another step. With a moan, she fell to her knees. Kankurō and Temari came to a halt immediately, and glanced back.

"Hey, what's going on?"

"My legs won't carry me," the girl explained. "How far is the village?" she added, massaging her sore left foot, and wincing.

The puppeteer let out a long sigh.

"We won't get there before tomorrow morning if you won't hurry," he murmured. "You're so slow."

Matsuri glared at him, and shrugged. Her feet literally burned, and she knew that if she would try to walk it would get worse and worse until she would have to crawl on all fours. Besides, she didn't have a reason to keep going. For that, she didn't comment on Kankurō's words, focusing on her poor aching legs.

"She's not used to walk for hours like we are," Temari remarked in a hushed voice. "What do we do?"

"I will carry her," Kankurō snarled angrily. "We're going to run."

He carried Matsuri bridal style, and ran. Naturally, he couldn't run as fast as he would do without the burden but his pace was still amazing. Matsuri was huffed at first but she couldn't sulk for too long.

"How is it possible that you can run so fast?" she inquired, her awestruck eyes widening at the speed.

"Ninja training," the puppeteer answered shortly.

Matsuri sighed at the thought of her own ninja training. It ended even before it started, basically. She hoped she could make her fear of weapons disappear somehow but it was impossible. Not even mentioning that nobody was interested in a future ninja who wasn't be able to hold a shuriken in their hand. That was why they told her that her name had been scratched out of the list. Since then she lived a purposeless life, and sometimes an emptiness of it was so unbearable that she just wanted to scream. Now, she knew that the emptiness could be much better than a death sentence. Only, it was too late.

There was an unpleasant sensation wrapping around her chest at the memory of what had happened, and the sight of the cliffs surrounding the village only added to it. Kankurō released her, and she hissed when her feet touched the ground. Seriously, how was it possible that he wasn't even tired after crossing all that distance, while she was completely exhausted, like she was able to sleep on the very spot for the rest of her life?

"Let's go," Temari urged, beckoning at the two. "Matsuri, you have to walk by yourself."

The girl nodded reluctantly, and dragged her limp feet towards Suna. She couldn't remember if she had ever been in such physical pain. At first, it wasn't even as bad as she thought it would be. However, another several steps made her realize quickly that her feet were covered with blisters ripping open, one by one. Matsuri walked slowly, her teeth clenched, barely paying heed to her surroundings. Only when Kankurō grabbed her wrist, she lifted her blurry gaze to his face.

"Wait here, Matsuri," he ordered.

The girl looked around. They were standing in front of her the huge, round building where she knew the Kazekage resided. Instinctively, she reached for Kankurō's arms, gripping it tightly.

"Can I go with you?" she pleaded softly.

"The guards won't let you in," Temari said sympathetically. "Just wait here."

Matsuri sighed, and slumped against the wall. The siblings exchanged glances and went inside, only to come to a halt right after entering the building. Matsuri could hear their voices, and someone else's voice, too.

"Kankurō, Temari," the male voice greeted them, obviously astonished. "What brings you here?"

"Jōseki-sama," Temari replied kindly but Matsuri realized somehow that the older kunoichi didn't like the man for some reason. "We need to see the Kazekage. It's urgent."

"I'm afraid the Kazekage-sama is busy at the moment," Jōseki said, emphasizing the honorific. "May I be of some help?"

"We found an orphaned girl in the desert. She had been kidnapped from the village. We saw it fit to bring her back," Temari explained, and Matsuri could almost feel the air growing thick.

"Indeed," the man named Jōseki murmured after the long pause. "And where is she? I suppose she needs to be taken care of."

"I'm here," Matsuri revealed herself. "Jōseki-sama, I'm—" she broke off immediately when she saw the siblings' faces. There was the biggest NO written in Temari's eyes, and Kankurō stepped closer towards her. The councilman grinned at her but Matsuri decided she didn't like those cold, narrow eyes of his.

"Actually, we thought we could take her in—" the puppeteer began. Matsuri's gaze snapped at him, the hope bursting within her chest.

"Did you?" Jōseki's gaze wandered between their faces, and then he grinned at Matsuri again, baring his teeth. "I think that's... uh,  _really great idea_."

**The end of chapter** **1** **1** **.**

**The next chapter: The flight**


	12. The flight

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~** **Chapter** **1** **2** **.** **The flight** **~**

Matsuri still couldn't believe her luck when Temari and Kankurō exited the Kazekage Tower at last, their expressions rigid with telltale blankness. The younger girl didn't pay much heed to it, clinging to the siblings in case that Jōseki guy was still hanging around. Casting the frightened glances here and there, Matsuri followed her guardians to the village's gates, and sighed with relief at the vague sight of the dunes looming in the gap between the cliffs. The siblings were completely silent and she followed their example, guessing it would be better to leave any comments on what had happened until later. Matsuri moaned inwardly, thinking about the distance they were about to cross. Fortunately, Kankurō lifted her again once they climbed up the first dune on their way. The puppeteer was apparently aware that her feet wouldn't bear another few hours of walking, and Matsuri's head rested against his shoulder, as an exhaustion rendered her sleepy. The ninja speed amazed her again but as the setting sun gave the dunes an unearthly glow, Matsuri felt her eyelids slipping down. Suddenly, the puppeteer stopped, and threw his burden onto the sand.

"Ow!" Matsuri cried, more of surprise than actual pain. "Kankurō-san, what—"

"Shh!" Temari shushed her impatiently, grabbing her fan. "How many?"

"Six, I think," Kankurō answered, getting his chakra threads ready. "What do we do?"

"We're going to wait." Temari tightened her hold on the fan. "We don't know what they want after all. If they want a fight, it may be we'll have to kill them all."

"Who is it?" Matsuri whispered, looking around. "I can't see anyone let alone hear anything..."

"I suppose they've been following us since we left the village," Kankurō murmured, and turned to the younger girl. "Listen, Matsuri, if there would be a fight, just run away. We won't let them chase you."

"Chase... me?" Matsuri muttered and frowned, rising up clumsily. If the siblings knew that the pursuers were after her, it only meant that she let her hopes get high for nothing because she wasn't safe at all. Someone - and why the man called Jōseki immediately came up to her mind? - really wanted her dead. First the kidnapping, and now this. Matsuri shivered all over as the fear, still lurking behind her calm demeanor, suddenly sprang up to the full-fledged existence, making her forget everything. Her feet didn't hurt anymore when she dashed forward blindly, barely hearing Temari's voice behind her. Her feet getting stuck in the loose sand, the girl panted heavily, and she didn't even notice when she lost her sandals and socks. Like a wild animal fleeing from its cage, stripped of all logic and reason, she ran and ran until her legs gave up, and her breathing turned ragged and noisy. Desperate, she crawled forward on all fours, digging her fingers into the sand. The sounds of battle didn't reach her anymore, and the sun had finally slipped down behind the horizon but she didn't stop, still dragging herself up and down the dunes until she was too exhausted to move even a finger. Even then, she listened intently to the desert noises in the night, forgetting that if there would be ninjas pursuing her, they would come quietly and unexpectedly. However, nobody appeared, and she gradually relaxed, hoping that Kankurō and Temari would find her soon once they were done with fighting their opponents.

 **The end of chapter** **1** **2** **.**

**The next chapter: The encounter**

  


  


  



	13. The encounter

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 13. The encounter~**

The desert was everywhere, endless like a universe. It could steal a self-confidence from anyone, and Matsuri had never been self-confident. Now, she was reduced to nothing, her existence meaning less than that of a grain of sand. Her previous determination was gone and she couldn't call it back to her, even if she knew that she desperately needed it.

She didn't know if she actually slept at night. Most likely, she spent a few hours in a self-induced state of some kind of trance. She was partly aware what was going on around her and gradually, the night chill had become unbearable, and she had to walk to warm herself up. When the sun finally rose, she was grateful for it. Now, she began to curse it, for the heat was just as much unbearable as the chill.

Matsuri had never been so tired before. She wouldn't even be able to imagine one could survive such exhaustion. Her entire body hurt, she was hungry and thirsty, barely able to walk. At first she thought the siblings would find her soon but then it turned out that she was mistaken, and she had to drag herself down the trace of her own footprints on the sand. She couldn't tell how long it was but it seemed to last forever before she finally noticed a few silhouettes in front of her.

The girl stopped, and fell to her knees, recognizing Suna flak jackets and turbans. Even before she could let out any sound, they surrounded her, their relentless faces announcing that she was finally out of luck.

One of the pursuers took out the kunai, and Matsuri whimpered, hiding her face in her hands.

"Stop. Jōseki-sama wants to question her," someone uttered.

"She's so much trouble. I'm telling you we should finish her immediately," another one argued.

"We're taking her to the village. Be careful not to let her escape again, though," the previous one ordered, and Matsuri was dragged up to her feet. Bound to the jōnin's back, she experienced an incredible speed again, only this time she wasn't amazed. She was struck with fear.

Where were the siblings? Were they dead? Matsuri couldn't believe they would desert her after declaring they would take her in. If they were actually dead, it meant no one would stand up for her any longer—

The girl's musings were interrupted when the whole group came to an unexpected halt.

"Who are you?" one of the Suna ninjas asked suspiciously, the question followed by the sound of kunais being taken out from holsters.

"What do we have here?" the snide male voice uttered in answer. "Desert ninjas on their way to the village? Looks like we can gather some information, un."

"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" someone asked again, his tone sharper and threatening. "Speak or—" He didn't even finish the sentence. There was a sound of numerous explosions and various weapons swishing in the air. The man who was carrying Matsuri flinched suddenly and fell backwards, quivering and wheezing. The girl took a deep breath but she wasn't allowed to scream as she hit the sand. The air was squeezed out of her lungs, and the only noise she could make was an unintelligible "Hnmpf". A hot liquid moistened her clothes, the coppery scent wafting in the air, and she writhed under the heavy body, to no avail. Then there was a silence.

"I would tell you who I am but it's not a matter of great importance to people who are going to die soon," the male voice drawled, low and hoarse.

"What do you want?" another voice spoke. Matsuri recognized one of the jōnins from Suna. She wished she could see what was going on there but she was still stuck under the body.  _The dead body_ , the voice inside her head added, and she struggled again, only to be stopped by the sound of the human voice that reached her ears.

"We need you to answer some questions, un," the same voice as before said. "We'll spare you if you do, un."

"I don't believe you," the jōnin said.

"Believe us or not, you simply have no choice, un."

"Stop chatting," another voice interjected, the one Matsuri had also heard moments ago. "Don't make me wait. You know I hate it."

"Always so impatient, danna. Un."

Without any warning, the jōnin screamed. Matsuri cried quietly, quaking as the blood covering her body grew cold. The pure terror overwhelmed her, paralyzing her.

"It's only so you wouldn't think of misdirection, un," the voice from before chided. The girl realized that there were only three voices speaking to each other, which meant that all ninjas from Suna except for one man were most likely dead.

"I... don't..." the jōnin stuttered.

"Tell me about the jinchūriki, un."

"The... jinchū—"

"Speak! Don't you see danna gets even more impatient? Or maybe you need more encouragement... un."

"No, I don't!" the jōnin protested. "I—" he trailed off to let out another scream. And another.

And another.

Matsuri prayed for it to end quickly. It seemed to her that it lasted for all eternity before they finally stopped.

"I think he's ready," the hoarse voice uttered.

"Let's see if you're right, danna. Un. So, tell us about the jinchūriki, un."

There was a long pause. Matsuri strained her ears because she couldn't do anything else. Something happened there that she couldn't comprehend at all. Stuck under the heavy corpse, rendered speechless and motionless by fear, she could only listen to the conversation.

"You... won't break me... so easily..." the jōnin panted, his voice barely audible. Matsuri wondered why the man resisted the torturers. Apparently, the truth about the jinchūriki - whatever jinchūriki was - was meant to be kept secret, and the jōnin would rather die than give it away.

"Step aside," the hoarse voice ordered.

"But I'm not done yet! Un."

"I'm telling you to step aside. Better don't make me wait."

The younger voice growled in anger.

"And what do you think you can achieve with this small needle?" he scoffed.

"You'll see."

 **The end of chapter** **1** **3** **.**

**The next chapter: The water canteen**


	14. The coincidence

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 15. The coincidence~**

Gaara spied on the girl with his Daisan no Me, slightly confused. If the council wanted to set a trap, they would surely use someone else. Could it be that she would be a clone? Only the mightiest ninja could maintain a perfect shadow clone for very long, because it required much chakra. Naturally, there were a few jōnins in Suna who could use Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. Was it one of them crawling in the desert, pretending to be a teenage girl who got lost in the middle of nowhere? If so, they had obviously found his hideout. If not, he still needed to know why the girl was there. This or either way, he needed to capture the person to interrogate her, or him.

Nothing could be easier than moving a sand under the stranger's feet until it crept up her body. The girl struggled but she fainted quickly. Gaara wondered if it was only an act, or she really was that weak. Slowly, he approached the lump of sand she was stuck in, unable to sense anything. If she was a ninja in disguise, she - or he - masked the chakra perfectly. Her head was leaning forward so he couldn't see her face. For that reason, he shifted the sand, changing its position.

The girl's head dropped backwards, and the fabric covering it began to unwrap. Gaara immediately noticed her lips, chapped and bleeding, which most likely meant she was severely dehydrated. However, that could also be a misdirection.

Without any warning, he released the body and it fell onto the ground. Cautious, he waited for any sign that she was preparing to attack him. However, the girl didn't move. Neither she moved when the ribbon of sand put the canteen to her lips, dropping a few drops of the precious water.

Gaara sat down on the sand and pondered. If the girl was dead, so be it. But if she was alive, he needed her to answer his questions. He poured a little more water into her mouth, and when she didn't react, he turned the canteen upside down. The girl recovered quickly and rolled to her side, coughing and sputtering. Gaara trapped her shivering body in the sand and took a few steps forward until she noticed him. Her eyes widened in unconcealed shock and fear, as her wet lips started trembling. Apparently, the sand bindings weren't even necessary since the girl was literally petrified.

"What are you doing here?" he drawled, his arms crossed over his chest. The girl looked around, blinking, as if wondering what he exactly meant. Growling quietly, he fought an urge to crush her immediately. "Speak!" he ordered, and her gaze focused on him again.

"I'm..." She swallowed hard, her voice weak and raspy. "I'm running away."

Gaara furrowed. The girl stared at him with only one question written in those big onyx eyes.  _Why am I still alive?_

"From who?" he seethed. "I told you to speak."

Her breathing grew uneven in an instant.

"I'm... Um, they were chasing me, and..." she stuttered. "From... from the village, I suppose. They killed them all, an—and I could... escape—" she panted, continuously glancing at empty canteen lying near. She licked her lips as if trying to collect the drops of water still hanging there.

Gaara gritted his teeth. Her explanations didn't make any sense.

"You're annoying," he snarled. "Start from the beginning, and better make sense this time."

The girl's eyes went blurry.

"I only know someone is after me," she announced quietly, looking away. "They tried to kill me. That was why I ran away."

Gaara chuckled darkly.

"After  _you_?" he mocked. "But you're a nobody. You're not even worth killing. Your life doesn't have any value. Why would anyeone want to kill you?"

"I don't know," she whispered, lowering her head.

Gaara was angry, and curious. He told the girl to make sense but she didn't. However, he encountered her in the desert, far from any village or city, which meant she was really determined to get as far from Suna as possible. Only the deadly fear could drive her away like that.

He recalled the first time he had met her. She had been left exactly at the point where he executed spies. Jōseki had assigned the mission to him. The councilman had said Sunagakure was being assailed by spies from other hidden villages. At first, Gaara thought the girl was a spy, too. She was disguised as a frail and faint-hearted teenager. Pretty good disguise, one could say. However, Gaara decided to spare her. He couldn't let his stupid siblings be poisoned again. Also, it would be interesting to see what the spy would do.

Only, she hadn't done anything, then. And now, she found him, again. Was it only a coincidence?

 **The end of chapter** **1** **5** **.**

**The next chapter: The nobody**


	15. The nobody

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 16. The nobody~**

Gaara left the girl as she was sitting on the sand, her blurry, unfocused gaze moving from one point to another without even seeing it. She didn't even notice he was gone. At that point, he was almost certain she wasn't any spy. She was just... well, nobody.

It didn't take him long to arrive at his hideout. The smell of the old blood-stained clothes was slowly becoming unbearable but he ignored it. He went to the narrow rift filled with water, sipped a little and refilled the canteen. Only then, he activated his Daisan no Me. Just as he had thought, the girl still didn't move. In her eyes, he could see the darkness overwhelming her soul. She didn't see anything, immersed completely in her own little world. Only now, her world started shrinking when the reality charged, brutally stripping her of any illusion.

Gaara took a step forward and pressed his fingers against his closed eyelid, concentrating on the vision.

The girl's shoulders shook a little as if she was cold. Wasn't it the chilling coldness of the most important realization? She must have known it now. She must have realized that her own village betrayed her in the filthiest way. Of course, Gaara wasn't particularly surprised. Jōseki had been widely known as the most hard-hearted of all Sunagakure elders although he should know better than trying to satiate Gaara's bloodlust with such meaningless victims. A spy or not, the girl's death would never give Gaara a feeling that he was alive. There was a time, once, when the random victims' hot blood trickling down his skin could make him feel alive. However, that time was since long gone. He needed more, now. Much more.

The girl's body quaked as she swallowed hard, her eyes glazed. Gaara could almost hear her thoughts. The disbelief came first when she realized that what happened to her was the council's scheme from the very beginning. Then there was the denial, only she couldn't deny the truth for too long. And now, the most painful realization was about to hit her. She was about to understand that she was completely, absolutely  _alone_ now. No one would come to comfort her nor save her. No one would come because no one cared, and Gaara could almost hear the whimpers of excruciated soul left out in the wilderness. The girl swallowed again, and he did the same without even knowing it, as his heart started beating faster.

Swiftly, he performed Shunshin no Jutsu, because he couldn't take it anymore. He needed to be there, in front of her, to feel it. Once done, he shifted his feet against the sand. The girl lifted her gaze at the noise and he licked his lips, leaning forward predatorily. Boring his gaze into hers, he could clearly see that the realization was right there, behind her wet eyelashes.

 _I_ _am alone._  That was the line written in her eyes as she mutely repeated it to herself.  _I am alone._ Her breaths were more like sobs, ragged and stripped of all hope.  _I am alone!_

Gaara nodded to himself, reveling in it. Oh, heavenly despair. Delicious anguish. If he could he would breathe it in. Drink it. Feed on it. Who could have ever thought she would give him  _this_?

Her eyes went blind as she grew closer and closer to the breaking point, and Gaara chuckled inwardly. Of course, it was going to end soon. The girl was too weak to accept the cruel reality. Most likely, she would completely indulge into her own little world, losing the will to live. And it would be so boring that Gaara winced, irritated with the thought. He loved watching people breaking but it never lasted long, unfortunately. All of them were way too weak. All of them were too eager to give up.

For that, they didn't deserve to survive.

 **The end of chapter** **16** **.**

**The next chapter: The breaking point**


	16. The breaking point

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 17. The breaking point~**

Matsuri felt as if tens of years had passed since she fled from Sunagakure. Driven by fear, she had found the determination in herself, which she would have never thought was there. Even if she still didn't known why she was sentenced to death, she had hoped she could just escape her fate if she would withdraw from Suna. If she only knew how wrong she was!

When the monster told her what had actually happened to her, she believed that he lied. How come one of Sunagakure councilmen would feed innocent people to the beast residing inside Sabaku no Gaara? Matsuri had just known that she couldn't believe it. If she would, her whole world would fall apart. Unfortunately, all the pieces fit together all-too-well but she still couldn't give up the hope.

 _But why would they still want to kill me?_  she had argued with a trembling voice.  _I didn't do anything wrong._

The monster had seemed to find a great delight in revealing the truth to her, bit by bit. He had bared his teeth, snorting at her words as if mocking her ignorance.

 _You carry the secret that belongs to the dead_ , he had said at last. The bizarre answer, to say the least. However, under the greatest amount of stress she had ever been in her entire life, Matsuri's intuition had achieved a new level of clarity.

 _Carry - the secret - the dead_.

In other words, what happened to her was meant to be kept secret. The council's actions were meant to be kept secret, at all costs. They wanted to silence her so she would never give away the foul truth about what the council had done to its own villagers. There was no refuge for her, nor salvation. Even now, the pursuers were looking for her, most likely. She was doomed.

Matsuri didn't know what was going on around her as her thoughts stampeded in circles.  _Is this world worth living in, at all?_  she mused, gripping her knees tightly.

Wasn't all resistance pointless? How could she, a mere teenage girl, fight against such enormous injustice? Could she do anything? Anything at all?

Matsuri felt she had had enough. Wouldn't it be better, let alone easier, to go to a quiet sleep? Just leave, and never go back? To join her parents, the only people who had ever cared about her? The memory of once happy family was so incredibly tempting. The warmth and love she yearned for would embrace her again...

 _Wait,_  she suddenly heard her own voice inside her head.  _Is it_ _what_ _my parents gave their li_ _v_ _e_ _s_ _for? Is it what I deserve?_

Then the rage she wouldn't even think she was able to contain rose within her, for she knew unmistakable answer.  _No! No one, just_ no one _deserves what they did! How many innocent people they sent to be buried under this red-haired monster's sand?_

Matsuri jumped to her feet, her fists clenching so tightly that her fingernails dug into her flesh. The pants almost tore her lungs apart as she gritted her teeth. Someone had to make the elders pay for their unforgivable deeds. There was no way they would escape unscathed, enjoying people's respect while they deserved nothing more than to be condemned and chastised.

Someone had to avenge the council's victims.

Only... there was no such person. Nobody knew the truth. Well, the siblings knew but they wouldn't do anything against the council. The monster knew but he didn't count. With that, Matsuri was left on her very own.

The boiling hatred filled her again when she thought about everything she had lost due to the council's schemes. She simply couldn't let it slip. Although she was still nobody at the moment, in years to come she would become somebody to make even Jōseki sorry.

The decision was made. Matsuri stretched up, challenging the world, until her gaze met the pair of the pale aqua eyes.

 **The end of chapter** **1** **7** **.**

**The next chapter: The hideout**


	17. The hideout

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 18. The hideout~**

Gaara watched the girl closely. He would have never credited her for the hatred, which burned in her eyes. She had looked so innocent before that it was boring. He was certain she would break down wailing and crying for help once she realized the hopelessness of her situation. However, she didn't shed a tear. At first, he believed it was shock. Then, it came to him that the girl had  _it_  in herself, after all. There was a potential there he would be glad to see blooming, only to smash it at its finest. He could see she had set a goal to herself, and she believed she could achieve it. Let her believe! After all, there were not many things in this world, which tasted better than honest beliefs being trampled over and crushed to dust.

Gaara could see clearly that the girl decided to take her revenge on the village. Good. She might be helpful to realization of his own plans. The determination in her eyes was absolute. As for the power of her hatred, he was going to measure it himself.

Suddenly, her onyx orbs pierced through him, and only then she cringed ever so slightly, her entire bearing screaming that she wanted to run away even if her feet remained stuck to the point. The hatred started waning, replaced by fear. For that, Gaara decided he had to proceed carefully. He could help her hone the hatred to the point where there would be nothing else left, only hoping she wouldn't make him kill her in the process.

Shrugging, he turned his back to her and beckoned her. Only then he paced towards his hideout, pretty much sure she wouldn't dare to disobey. Her feet shuffled against the sand as she dragged herself along but he didn't mind it any longer. His head began to ache again, Shukaku's rage almost splitting it open, and Gaara tugged at his own hair angrily, quietly cursing the beast. His hair had gotten quite long since he left Suna, and he wove his fingers into it, fighting pain with pain. Once he went into the low cave, the stench made his stomach make somersaults. Even more exasperated, he turned on his heel immediately, marching out from the hideout. The girl was peeking inside shyly but she jumped back when she saw his immediate retreat. Freezing in the spot, she only stared at him, swallowing.

"The water's there," he snarled, showing her the way. Motionless, the girl watched him as if expecting a trap. Gaara snorted scornfully and waved it aside. The girl's needs were not his concern, after all. He found himself a flat rock to sit on, and breathed deeply when the migraine began to fade away. He heard the sound of the footsteps; apparently, the girl walked towards the rift, and from what he could hear, she fell to her knees and started drinking the cold water greedily. Idiot. Her stomach would ache like hell if she wouldn't stop, not even mentioning she could die.

Well, to each his own.

Gaara touched his temples instinctively. Not that it could help disperse the headache. Fortunately, Ichibi calmed down and stopped trying to go out. The redhead took the kunai out of the holster and grabbed his annoying hair, cutting it away. The vermilion strands fell against his shoulders, and he brushed them away. Finally, his hair didn't obstruct his vision, and the wind didn't blow it into his face. It was as far from the proper haircut as it could ever be but Gaara didn't particularly care. He slipped the blade into the holster and turned his head to watch the girl who had obviously slaked her thirst. Approaching him reluctantly, she stared at what he had done to his hair with her eyes widened. Naturally, she didn't utter a word. Gaara slanted a glance at her before he jumped off the rock and beckoned her impatiently.

"Go there," he instructed, pointing at the cave entrance. The girl flickered her gaze at it, and hesitated.

"What's there?" she asked warily.

"The clothes that need washing," he replied, and teleported away.

 **The end of chapter** **1** **8** **.**

**The next chapter: The temptation**


	18. The temptation

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 19. The temptation~**

Matsuri held a kunai in a slightly trembling hand.  _I can do it_ , she told herself.  _I have done it before._

Only, she couldn't. The fear couldn't be reasoned with so easily. Her mind went into a panic mode whenever her fingers came closer to the metal hilt. How was she supposed to take the revenge if she couldn't even use weapons?

The kunai felt even more disgusting in her hand because it belonged to the monster. She still didn't make anything of his reasons for giving her the blade. Was he trying to help her? Highly unlikely. So, why did he do that? As far as she could guess, it could be a sick game of his. The game she didn't want to play but she actually needed a weapon to start with her task. For that reason, she decided to keep it.

Matsuri focused on looking back. She wanted to recall in detail the very moment when the hatred was born. Her chest burned at the remembrance of the monster as he had made all the pieces of the jigsaw fall together. Gritting her teeth, Matsuri recalled Jōseki's face. She had seen it only once but she knew she would never forget it. She didn't like him from the very beginning, and now she knew why it was that way.

Suddenly, the kunai started feeling much better to her. It became her partner. Her accomplice. She still detested it but now she could bear with the nausea. The kunai seemed to say: 'I hate you, and you hate me, but we still need each other. I can help you, and you can help me _._ _'_

Slowly, Matsuri lifted the weapon, and watched the sun rays reflecting on the blade's shining surface. It looked almost hypnotizing. Spotless. Flawless.  _Until tainted with blood._

An item designed solely for the purpose of taking people's lives.

Matsuri tightened her grip on the weapon, imagining its pointed end plunging into human flesh. How would it feel like? Would it pierce through easily? The blade looked sharp enough to be able to cut through muscles and veins as if they were a mound of the desert sand, and Matsuri couldn't stop thinking about trying it. Lifting her other hand, she put the blade to her skin, pressing it lightly against the blue vein. If she would do it quickly and push it deeper, it would cut the artery...

Licking her lips, she let her fingers relax until the kunai slipped away from her palm, plunging into the sand at her feet where it sat still. Matsuri eyed it down her nose. It had been tempting her but she resisted the temptation. Now, she felt as if she achieved a new level of self-control. She chuckled quietly, her voice a bit raspy, and knelt down near the weapon. The next moment, she frowned. The air grew thick suddenly and she didn't know why at first but then she realized it must be the monster. Looking around, she spotted him in a distance, apparently watching her. As it always was in his presence, she froze like a cornered animal, time standing almost still as he walked closer. Wordlessly, he took a kunai out of the holster, swirled it around his finger, and grabbed the hilt in an instant. Then he took the position and flung the weapon effortlessly. Matsuri watched the gleaming blade as it swished through the air.

"This is how you do it," the monster spoke and she snapped her gaze up at him. He didn't look at her, his eyes focused on where the kunai went. Immediately, the weapon was flung back into his grasp by the ribbon of sand, and he caught it without looking at it, slipping it into the holster in a fluid motion. The next moment, he disappeared in a cloud of a sand dust.

Matsuri let out a breath she was holding, and stood up. She gazed around warily but the monster wasn't anywhere within her sight. Only then she bent to draw out the kunai, and weighed the weapon in her hand. She made the first step but there was still so much to be done with her. She needed a proper ninja training, and she seriously doubted the monster could be of any help with that even if he demonstrated to her in a superficial manner how to throw a blade. For that reason, she decided that she had to abandon him, and fast.

That is, if he would let her go.

 **The end of chapter** **1** **9** **.**

**The next chapter: The whispers**


	19. The whispers

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 20. The whispers~**

It started with an almost imperceptible twitch of the monster's hands, when he stopped eating and lowered his head slowly until his chin rested on his chest. His arms drooped, and the bit of a poorly cooked tempura slipped from between his fingers.

Matsuri assessed him from the corner of her eye, careful to pretend she was still staring at the small camp-fire, which was placed near the mouth of the cave. She chewed on tempura, which she had to make for the two of them before. The food seemed to grow in her throat, almost choking her.

His lips moving ever so slightly, the redhead seemed to mutter something to himself. His fingers were clenching and opening in a tardy motion, as if he tried to grab something that wasn't there, and the muscles in his exposed neck visibly tensed.

Hardly swallowing the food, the girl sipped the water, still faking her great interest in the dancing flames. It seemed to her he wouldn't notice even if she looked straight at him, but she couldn't risk being caught. He hated being stared at, and she didn't want to anger him.

Matsuri almost jumped when the monster's palm snapped up, grasping the fistful of his hair. Her heart pounded against her sternum, but she managed to stifle the surprised gasp, which threatened to escape her lips. He still didn't seem to pay any attention to her, though. With one of his hands clutching to his hair tightly as if he tried to rip his scalp off, he hissed through the clenched teeth.

"Yes," he murmured almost inaudibly. "Yes, mother."

Matsuri gulped, her hand trembling, as she took another bit of tempura from her bowl. She tried to eat it but her mouth was too dry. The girl decided she couldn't risk choking, so she slowly put the food back into the bowl, and took another draught of water.

The monster's body suddenly quaked, as if he was feverish. Shaking his head, he raised his other hand and pressed his palms against his temples. The quaking gradually stopped, but his breathing hitched, as he started talking to himself again. "Yes. Yes. Of course, mother. I'm—" He groaned painfully.

Matsuri watched him with unconcealed fear but he was obviously too busy with whatever was going on with him to mind her gaping. He groaned again, louder this time, his knuckles whitening when he tried to dug his fingertips into his skull.

"That's right, mother," he recited between gasps. "I am always a good boy, I am—" He nodded vehemently. "Yes, mother! Yes!" he whimpered, drawing in the sharp breath, and still nodding as if eager to please the 'mother' by any means.

Horrified, the girl dropped all pretences, and crawled back, her eyes sticking to the redhead. She thought she knew who he was talking to, but the realization only added to her panic. She had no idea why he called the demon his mother, but it was just him. Insanity personified. He had no reason. He needed no reason.

With a yelp of an apparent pain, the monster leaned forward, releasing his head and pressing his palms against the sandy floor. Shivering, he panted and sobbed, occasionally whispering some words to himself, or to his 'mother', most likely. The spit streaked down from his mouth, leaving wet marks on the sand.

Matsuri shifted towards the entrance, wondering if he would be mad at her later that she saw him in such pathetic condition. She decided she would run if the sand demon started taking over, hoping she would have enough time to escape. It didn't seem to be the case, though. The monster was still in a human form, even if he was everything but human.

Matsuri blenched and cried softly, when the redhead screamed in a high pitched voice, the voice she had never heard from him before. Gripping his head again, he uttered some unintelligible noises, and straightened a bit, so she could see a glimpse of his face.

That face, usually daunting and dreadful, was now contorted in pain. His eyes were screwed shut, his bared teeth clenching so forcefully that she could see the muscles in his jaw working, the veins stood out in his brow and neck, and the drops of sweat were covering his pale skin.

Apparently, pain didn't even begin to describe it.

The girl couldn't help but watch him with a mix of a sick fascination, fear and something what would be a deep sympathy, if it was about someone else. She watched as he begged and wailed, writhed and trembled, and when a single tiny tear slipped from between his eyelashes, Matsuri found herself momentarily wondering if there wasn't something human left in him, after all.

All her thoughts gone in a flash, she leaned backwards rapidly when his eyes snapped open, his insane gaze searching frantically across the cave, as if looking for something he could cling to. Eventually, he spotted her and their gazes met. Matsuri jumped to her feet at the defenseless and pleading look in his eyes, and dashed towards the exit as if all the nine bijū were chasing her, because nothing she had suffered from him before was just as terrifying as the thought that Sabaku no Gaara might be seeking comfort in her.

 **The end of chapter** **20** **.**

**The next chapter: Sated**


	20. Sated

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 21. Sated~**

Her clothes piled in a heap, and the worn bucket drawn aside, Matsuri stepped into the small hollow, which she had finally filled with water. The hour was still early, and the rock walls of the canyon were shielding her from the blazing rays of sun, the air down there still preserving some of the night's chill.

For a time being, the girl listened to the noise of the wind whistling in the clefts. None other sound disrupted the dead silence reigning in the desert, so she gradually relaxed. Closing her eyes with a sigh and lolling her head back, she wondered what was going on with the monster.

He had been gone for almost three days since the fit, and she grew a bit anxious. She was afraid he would return unexpectedly, and she would be caught off-guard. Naturally, it would be nice of him if he wouldn't come back at all, but Matsuri knew there was not much hope for that. He was hiding in this godforsaken place for a purpose she didn't know anything of, like he was waiting for something. Just like a beast lurking in the depths of his mind and body, he was also lying in wait for something. Or someone.

Her ruminations interrupted, she straightened swiftly, when something heavy fell down onto the sand with a muffled, distant thud. She started looking around frantically, but she didn't have to search for too long, since the monster was standing near.

Matsuri's hands wandered instinctively closer to her body, covering her private parts. She watched the monster as he threw aside his white sash, which was not so white at the moment. The thud she had heard earlier announced that he got rid of his gourd, and the thing rested now on the sand. Appalled, Matsuri tried to step back, even if she had nowhere to retreat. The monster didn't pay attention to her, though. He was too busy taking off his net shirt and dark green pants, and the girl almost choked, when he dropped the said articles of clothing onto the sand, revealing much more of a flawless, milky skin she had ever wanted to see.

Her sense of decency would have made her avert her eyes but she had learned already that it was pointless around him, since the monster himself didn't see fit to abide by any rules. Besides, she needed to keep her eyes on him, to gauge the slightest reaction, which could announce the change of his mood.

At the moment, his spirits seemed to be rather high. The blood covering his clothes and body must have something to do with it, definitely. The girl swallowed, attempting to get rid of the bitter taste in her mouth, but it didn't want to go away. Despite of the daily heat steadily increasing, she felt as if she was chilled to the bone, her teeth chattering and her body trembling uncontrollably. The weird taste on her tongue increased, when she looked at the rusty-brownish stains and spots on the redhead's skin, the spikes of his hair glued together in places where the blood had rained upon his scalp.

Stripping off his sandals, he shook his head briefly, as if knocking himself out of some kind of daze. After taking a few steps forward, he pinned the girl with his cold, pale gaze, looking as if he'd never seen her before. Matsuri cringed, but he only ordered her out of the pool with an almost imperceptible tilt of his head.

She knew better than to protest. Stumbling, she crawled out of the water, towards her clothes, when the sharp voice cut an air like a knife.

"Leave it."

Confused, she stared at him for a while, but he only tilted his head again. She had no any other choice than to obey, so she began to fall back, until she went away good thirty steps from him. Crouching down tardily, she regarded him with trepidation, but his steady, hateful gaze had already left her, when the monster stepped into the water and started washing away the remnants of his bloody escapade.

She didn't know how long it lasted. Time always seemed to pass very slowly in his presence, or very quickly, depending on his attitude. At the moment, he was relatively calm, his homicidal urges momentarily eased with the lives he had apparently taken. The water in the small pool turned reddish, when he finally finished cleaning himself, and the girl cringed again, trying to make herself invisible. However, he didn't spare even a single glance for her. He simply went out of the pool, shaking the water off like a dog, and walked towards her own clothes. Picking them up, he briefly brushed the sand off her black trousers and dark yellow shirt, and put them on as if they were his very own. Matsuri clenched her fists, watching him as he settled down on the sand to put on her sandals. Then he dipped the loose end of his white sash in the water, and began to clean the blood off the leather bands attached to his gourd.

The girl swallowed, forcing herself to stay silent, even if the scream of protest was continuously threatening to tear out from her throat. She didn't want him inside her clothes. She didn't want another chore he had just imposed on her. She didn't want to cook his meals for him nor wash his tainted garments.

Unfortunately, what she wanted and what she didn't was of no importance there. He was the one to give orders, and she was the one to obey. He was the one to set the rules, and she was the one to abide by them.

Hatred burning her chest from the inside, Matsuri watched the monster, as he walked away in her clothes. Eventually, he vanished in a distance, but she didn't change her position for the next several minutes, just in case. Then she slowly straightened, her body stiff from staying motionless for what seemed to be an eternity. Moving towards the repulsive pile of the bloodstained fabric, she squeezed her nose with two fingers to block any possible stink. What was she supposed to do? There were some spare clothes in the cave but the monster had probably gone there, and she didn't plan on walking naked in front of him although he obviously had no such inhibitions. If she only could throttle him with her bare hands... She imagined his darkened eyelids closing for ever, as his scornful, malicious look would be banished from the world.

Yes, the world would have been so much better place without him.

 **The end of chapter** **2** **1** **.**

**The next chapter: Astonished**


	21. Astonished

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 22. Astonished~**

Gaara wove more his chakra into the sand, panting heavily as the reserves of chakra he had stored earlier grew low.  _More... Just a little bit more..._  he thought to himself, concentrating hard on the round shape in front of him. He could sense that the sand was becoming harder but still not as hard as Gaara had intended. Putting an extreme pressure was still a difficult task to him, and he exhaled through his nose, aggravated, wondering how long it would take to store the needed amount of chakra to create this particular technique. He couldn't even think of attacking the village without such a defense, given they would come at him with their all. He needed a defense no weapon would penetrate, and he also needed more powerful offensive techniques as well.

Growling, he gave up on what he was doing, instead putting on the sand some fancy additional details, Shukaku's characteristic pattern included.  _How should I_ _name_ _it?_  he pondered, and a wolfish grin crossed his lips momentarily.  _I know. I_ _t'll be_ _Saikō Zettai Bōgyo: Shukaku no Tate_ _!_

Satisfied with the name he had invented, Gaara decided to call it a day, and went to his hideout to have a meal. Since the girl started cooking for him he could concentrate on more important tasks although her cooking skills weren't as high as he would have liked. Sometimes the redhead wondered if she was doing that on purpose but he abandoned the thought because it was hard to believe she would go so far only to annoy him. After all, she also had to eat those pathetic meals.

A meal was a meal, after all, and Gaara wouldn't reject having one after all the exertion, plus he had never been particularly picky. Actually, since the poisoning attempt his father had made on him once, Gaara had a love-hate relationship with food. He liked to eat a nicely cooked food but it could also happen to pose a great threat to his existence. Not even mentioning he hated being dependent no matter if on people or objects or anything, food included. That was why he eyed the battered pot up and down with his lips pursed, and the spiteful snarl rose at the back of his throat when his nostrils caught the smell, which made his stomach rumble.

He ate nikujaga fast, even more irritated because it reminded him that he would have to get the provisions soon. Attacking caravans didn't provide him with distraction any longer but he still had to raid them to obtain the food. How vexing.

Putting the pot aside so the girl could wash it later he wondered where she was. Most likely proceeding with that ridiculous training of hers, which wouldn't be much effective since she would obviously go into fear-induced stupor whenever her fingers brushed against the kunai or shuriken. He demonstrated to her how to throw a kunai properly because it seemed to him that there was a slight change in her attitude but it was still apparent that she would need a ninjutsu training at some point. That is, if she would have survived and could find a proper teacher. Gaara momentarily mused over showing her the basics but then he dismissed the notion. He was the least suitable to teach from all people, too prone to become impatient and angry in an instant. At least, he could go and take a peek at how she was doing, to find some entertainment whilst his chakra was being restored.

The redhead sent his spying eye first, and to his astonishment he found the girl doing rather well. She had built a small heap of sand as her target and was stabbing at it, her movements collected and deliberate. Gaara flitted the tip of his tongue against his teeth before his lips curled to form a cruel smirk. That was definitely a progress, another indication of the potential hidden within this innocently-looking girlish frame.

It was likely that he was an actual person the girl imagined she would plunge the blade into but he couldn't care less. Settling onto the sand, he relaxed, his eyelid closed as he continued his scrutiny over an oblivious subject.

 **The end of chapter** **2** **2** **.**

**The next chapter: Illogical**

Saikō Zettai Bōgyo: Shukaku no Tate= Ultimately Hard Absolute Defence: Shield of Shukaku

Nikujaga = a Japanese dish of meat, potatoes and onion stewed in sweetened soy sauce, sometimes with konjac (devil's tongue) and vegetables.


	22. Illogical

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 23. Illogical~**

The fire was starting to die down, letting the darkness into the cave along with night's chill. The girl sleeping next to the wall mumbled quietly, and pulled the thin battered blanket over her frame as if attempting to preserve some warmth. It didn't last long though. Soon she relaxed, and went into the deep slumber, her breaths returning to their previous calm and steady pattern.

Gaara hated witnessing others' sleep but he didn't exit the hideout for some reason. When on the mission, he had been always placing a decent amount of distance between himself and his siblings at nights to not listen to what angered him the most; relaxed breaths, purrs and sighs, and oblivious mumbling, which he had been denied from the very beginning. Not that he would like to get an access to that field of a human experience. Gradually, he had learned to deem himself superior because of his insomnia. An irresistible urge to sleep was a human weakness, and he detested everything that linked him to the human kind. Not even mentioning he detested weaknesses, no matter if regarding himself or others. That was why he despised those who had to sleep, and also those who had denied him the blissful regeneration of mind and soul, forcing him to stay constantly awake.

Baring his teeth, he slanted a glare at a sleeping, oblivious silhouette at the opposite side of the cave but couldn't help to be interested in some way. What mostly intrigued him was his own reaction to the girl. It reminded him of the feelings Temari's presence had stirred in his gut once. Unable to identify the source or supress the sensation to the satisfying point, he had been continuously frustrated until he had finally decided to approach his older sister and act on impulse. He hadn't exactly known what he had wanted to achieve. It had been simply to vent his frustration and see where it would take him. Temari had chastised him, pointing out that she was his sister, and Gaara didn't get at all why it should have been relevant. Not even mentioning that her being his sister didn't have any connotations to him. Sister was just a word to him, like sand or desert. Of course, Gaara knew that people were siblings if they were born to the same parents but it was just a piece of information, not linked in any way to his emotions.

Sister or not, his act towards Temari hadn't changed anything. She had run away from him and he had been puzzled by the revelation of her unwillingness to hurt him. Once she had returned from the village, the revelation had been extended because Temari had admitted to Kankurō that she didn't want to fight Gaara. The redhead had taunted his siblings about their cowardice even if he had been actually aware that they mostly didn't want to accept the mission they had been given because they still regarded him as their brother, and that sentimental crap was what always riled him up the most. He didn't want their pity nor, gods forbid, affection. The very word was pathetic enough to make him sick and angry. He had decided to leave it all behind for a time being, and the strange feeling clawing at his insides that was Temari's fault had faded away slowly. Now it seemed to return to life again; an exotic need to do something - to get something, perhaps - even if he didn't have the faintest idea what it was.

His analytic skills set in motion, Gaara pulled himself to a standing position and headed for the camp-fire located near the entrance with quiet steps. He poked at the burning logs with a large twig, and the flames blazed up again. Casting a glance over his shoulder, he found out that the girl was still sleeping soundly, apparently being heavily exhausted after her daily routine, which involved more physical exertion than she was used to. However, her determination was absolute, and Gaara had to credit her with the stubbornness at least. Her features, always showing cautiousness and apprehension when he was around, were now completely serene, promptly lighting the spark of jealousy in his chest. Not that he wanted to lie insensible and vulnerable like she was but he still was mad at her for being able to relax to such extent.

There was not much logic in all of this but Gaara couldn't care less. Logic had never been a necessary page in his book, after all.

 **The end of chapter** **2** **3** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:** **Petrified**


	23. Petrified

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 24. Petrified~**

Her muscles sore and stiff, Matsuri groaned quietly under her breath, adjusting her position under the blanket. Her mind urged to submerge into the realm of dreams again but there was something in the air, which disturbed her enough to shuffle the sleep off. Stirring sleepily, the girl still refused to open her eyes, because there were no valid arguments why she would do so. The cave was silent except for the crackling noises of the camp-fire, and Matsuri was certain that dawn wouldn't be anytime soon. However, her instincts seemed to warn her that somehing was off, and she gave up at last with the small huff.

Glancing around, she noticed him immediately. The monster was settled on the sand a few feet from her, his unblinking stare focused on her as she took the scene in. At first, it seemed bizarre enough to make Matsuri think she was trapped in some kind of nightmare. Perhaps the notion was just her mind refusing to accept the reality for she wouldn't know in the slightest how to deal with it. An image of him sitting near when she had remained oblivious was just too terrifying and suddenly Matsuri felt sick to her stomach as she broke out in a cold sweat. Her heart pounded so hard that it almost choked her, its heavy beats squeezing air out of her lungs. Her vision began to blurry and for the most frightening instant in her life she thought she would faint. Balling her palms into fists under the blanket, she dug her fingernails into her skin until the pain drew the nausea away. The monster didn't seem to acknowledge any of this. He was simply sitting there and one could mistake him for a statue if not for the slight heaves of his ribcage, indicating that he was surely a living thing.

Matsuri's widened eyes bore into his narrow ones as her panicking mind produced the brief, pointless notion that their eyes couldn't be more different than that; hers were coal black, looking like the they were all pupils while his aqua-green ones looked like he had no pupils at all. Then the notion extended, making Matsuri suddenly gasp at the thought that her gaze had also been different from his once. There had been a kindness and timidity in her eyes once but it was before the latest horrid events occured. Since then it started fading and Matsuri couldn't stop an image of her future eyes from haunting her; the eyes looking exactly like his; scornful, and sinister.

Would it come to that if she indulged in hatred? Would she turn into  _this_? Matsuri dreaded it but she reminded herself of Jōseki, and other councilmen. Everything began with their decision to feed her to the monster, and she had a right to hate them for it. She had a right to seek vengeance.

In other words, her hatred was justified, and his was  _not_.

She didn't know how much of those flashing thoughts reflected in her eyes but some apparently did because the monster narrowed his eyes if ever so slightly. Matsuri flinched, her breaths turning into short, forced gasps even though she tried her best to control it. It didn't really matter that the redhead seemed to be strangely calm - pensive even - at the moment. Matsuri had seen his moods before, and how they could alternate within a blink. From tranquility to violence, from thoughtfulness to a raw fury, but never the other way round. It always was completely unpredictable and Matsuri was yet to pinpoint a factor that could be blamed for triggering any of his fits. Oddly enough, the monster had never hurt her, physically at least. He was scathing beyond all imagination, apparently being able to easily read into her each and every weakness, and flay them bare so he could spit and trample on them. Matsuri detested him and feared him all the same but somehow she had been slowly lulled to the false sense of security. Her stomach making somersaults, the girl realized it could have been just a sick game, to deceive her into believing that he wouldn't do a physical harm to her. Her lips went completely dry, and she flickered her tongue over her mouth in a futile attempt to moisten it. He still wouldn't move, his gaze sticking to hers, and Matsuri pulled herself vehemently to a sitting position, clutching the blanket and bunching it against her chest. Doing so, she could release a small portion of her rapidly increasing trepidation but there was still too much of it left, thrumming inside her chest and skull.

"What do you want?" she blurted out at last, her voice faltering and squeaky. She knew she was giving away the panic that nearly overwhelmed her but she had since long given up on her pride, and stopped trying not to show how much she feared him.

Naturally, he didn't respond, scrutinizing her as if she was some kind of an alien. He looked contemplative and fascinated, and Matsuri decided she disliked that look just the same as his usual malicious and angry one. There was something in his pose, which for some reason reminded her of the beast lying in wait at the back of his mind, and the girl's teeth started chattering at the realization that everything her eyes fell upon - the red hair, the pale eyes, the moonlight skin - was only a thin veil, actually thinner than a breath, and what did truly matter was the thing hidden behind it.

The monster leaned forward a little and Matsuri crawled back as fast as she could until her back was stuck to the rough cave wall. Still holding the ragged blanket against her chest like some kind of a poor shield, she broke the eye contact and screwed her lids shut, chewing on her lower lip as the inevitable question bubbled at the back of her throat.

"Are you going to kill me?" she asked in a small voice although pointless question it was. Dying wouldn't feel any better whether she would have been forewarned it was going to happen or not.

The monster let out a breath. "Who knows?" he hummed quietly.

Matsuri pushed back the tears stinging her eyes, still refusing to open her lids. "Please, don't—"

The long pause followed her daring albeit stupid request, and Matsuri crushed her lower lip between her teeth. Unable to endure the tension, she flickered her eyes open, and darted a glance at the redhead, choking at the sight of the thin coils of sand playing around his fingers.

"Why?" he demanded harshly as the coils sank onto the cave floor like snakes lying down to the light sleep. "Your existence is unnecessary. It has no purpose at all."

The girl shook her head frantically. "But I have a purpose!" she objected with fervor and it seemed to earn her his complete and unwavering attention.

"Do you?" he inquired, his tone mocking but also curious.

Matsuri inhaled through her nose before revealing what was supposed to be kept secret. "I do," she admitted quietly. "There's something I want to do very badly."

He didn't comment on it but his eyes told her she had to elaborate. The girl squeezed her lids again as the familiar icy claw tightened around her heart; the reminder of the day of violated trust and lost innocence.

"I want them to pay for what they have done to me," she spat. The monster responded with a chuckle, and Matsuri's eyes snapped open at an eerie noise. "I—I know I may not be able to do anything at the moment," she admitted, feeling her swollen lower lip with her tongue. "But this is only a start—"

The next moment, the redhead jumped to his feet, and Matsuri let out a frightened cry, raising her hands as if trying to block the hit. He kicked the blanket, sending it several feet away, and outstretched his arm, his fingers splayed as he made the sand start its deadly dance around her throat, just as she had feared before.

"I followed you to the pool in the morning," he seethed, his eyes narrowed into serpentine slits. "Why did I do that? Did you do something to me? Why would I do that?"

Petrified, Matsuri could only shake her head vehemently. "Let me go," she whispered plaintively, hot tears pouring down her cheeks.

"What is going on with me?" he continued in a hiss, swaying on his feet and flashing his teeth at her. "What did you do to me?"

"Just let me go," she repeated, barely listening to his ramblings. "Please—"

"Stop whining! I hate it."

"I'll just go," she insisted, plunging her teeth into her already ruined lip. The coppery taste tainted her tongue, adding to the salty tang of the tears. "I'll go and never come back. Please. I can't die yet!"

The thick ribbon of roughness fastened around her neck, and the girl swallowed the large intake of air before the darkness engulfed her.

**The end of the chapter 24.**

**The next c** **hapter:** **Awake**


	24. Awake

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 25. Awake~**

At first, Matsuri didn't know what happened. She remembered that she had gone to sleep in the evening, only to wake up in the morning with her neck awfully aching and the painful itch upon her skin. She turned her head to the side, groaning when the stiff tendons refused working properly, and the surge of pain pierced through her skull, adding to the migraine lurking at the edge of Matsuri's consciousness. The sound of her own voice was strange, too raspy and low even by an early morning standards, and the girl momentarily considered staying where she was for a time being, and oversleeping what she found to be a muscle fever. Her hand sneaked down to pull at the blanket, and the reality hit her when she found none. The scream got stuck into her ruined windpipe, and she hyperventilated, her eyes snapping here and there to see if the monster was anywhere within her sight. Fortunately, she was alone in the cave and, oddly enough, it terrified her even more.

If she was to place a bet on anything that occured last night, it would be her death. She should have been dead by now, simple as that. She couldn't possibly survive, and yet she did.

Matsuri looked around again, raising her fingers to touch her neck, feeling the sore, chafed skin. The nausea brought the sour and bitter taste to her tongue, making her immediately urge for water but she didn't dare to move.

She was supposed to be dead. He would never abandon a victim like that. He would never fall back after he would corner his prey with his catlike steps—

 _And what is what cats do before they kill the mouse?_  the quiet voice in the girl's head asked, and Matsuri sputtered, replying to it immediately.

_They toy with it._

Her hands trembling and her eyes continuously shooting glances at the mouth of the cave, Matsuri caught the black trousers that belonged to the monster once, and tied the legs together. Throwing the water canteen and a few mochi into the makeshift bag, she sought frantically for her turban. It was entangled in the blanket, and the girl grabbed it quickly. She stuck it into her 'bag' as well as her sandals and spoon. Once done, she tightened her hold on a kunai, painfully aware that it wouldn't be of any help if the monster was to attack her. However, she felt a little bit better, as if she wasn't alone anymore. The cold metal seemed to cool her blood and calm her thoughts that were rushing in panicking circles. Raising her arm offensively, Matsuri started marching towards the entrance. Her every step lasted for what seemed to be an eternity, and her muscles began to ache soon. The noises she was making seemed to be louder than thunderclaps, and she made a mental note she had to learn to move noiselessly like a monster did.

That is, if she would get out of this hell in one piece.

Matsuri came to a temporary halt just at the entrance. Taking a deep breath, she wiped her sweaty hands against her shirt, and gripped the kunai. Slowly, she moved her left foot forward. After a few minutes her right foot followed, and the girl narrowed her eyes momentarily because of the dazzling daylight. Blinking away the tears, she scanned the vicinity carefully, literally jumping at every quiet sound the breeze was making.

It seemed that the monster was gone.

Matsuri's heart hammered wildly against her ribs as she strolled down the canyon. Her pace was even and quite leisure at first but it quickened gradually until it became a full-fledged sprint. The 'bag' was knocking on her back, and Matsuri felt the spoon jabbing at her ribcage with every step. If the monster would see her by any chance he would make no mistake about what she was exactly doing. Her only hope was that he left for some of his enigmatic reasons, and whatever business he was involved in would keep him occupied for long enough to make her escape attempt successful.

Fortunately, she had incorporated some physical exercise into her temporary training program. Running across the desert wasn't as hard and exhausting to her as it had been before even if it still wasn't any closer to what ninjas could do. Not even mentioning the ability of moving a distance at an almost untraceable speed, which she had initially thought was a teleportation.

Yes, there was still so much to be done with her.

Matsuri ran unless her legs buckled. She fell down, unable to support herself properly, and her body smacked against the sand. Her tongue felt dry and swollen in her mouth; the price she had to pay for breaking one of the desert rules.  _Never run across the desert in_ _a_ _broad daylight._

Panting, the girl uncorked the canteen and sipped the water. Her feet hurt and she realized she didn't have her sandals on. Looking back, she remembered she had put her shoes into the 'bag' before she hurried out of the monster's hideout. Touching her sand-grazed skin with a hiss, Matsuri pulled the 'bag' off her shoulder and took out her turban and sandals. After cutting off two pieces of fabric, she wrapped them carefully around her sore feet, and put her shoes on. Painful as it was, it would be nothing in comparison to the monster's tender mercies, and Matsuri pulled herself to a standing position, ready to continue her journey to the west even if her pace surely wouldn't be fast anymore. Wincing, she wound the turban on her head, and forced her tender feet to move.

An hour later she grew accustomed to the sharp pain biting at her feet. She consistently ignored it, managing to have it withdrawn to the fringe of her consciousness where the numbing ache sat still, apparently waiting for the stop to charge at her again with its full force. Dragging her body up and down the dunes, Matsuri slowly began to lose her focus. She needed an every bit of her willpower to make herself trudge forward, and there was nothing of it left to support the constant, tense scanning through the vicinity to establish that she was still alone. Not that it made any difference, though. Suna ninjas were moving swiftly and noiselessly, and they descended on her before she could even think of what the familiar flak jackets meant for her.

Matsuri lifted her gaze and glanced here and there, at the tight circle of ninjas gathered around her. They looked surprised a bit, and she briefly considered a possibility that they didn't know who she was. Maybe they were just astounded by a sudden encounter. After all, she was only a teenage girl, walking down the desert by herself. That itself was a valid reason for ninjas to stop and investigate, wasn't it?

**The end of the chapter 25.**

**The next c** **hapter:** **Collaborative**


	25. Collaborative

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 26. Collaborative~**

The desert's mild shapes were often comforting to Gaara but not this time. For some reason, the turmoil within him wasn't going to stop, even though he was a little tired after pacing around for several hours. Good that Ichibi was relatively quiet at the moment because if he decided to join the last night's strife, the girl would be most likely dead by now. At least Gaara believed it would be so although the doubts still sat at the back of his mind.

Ichibi or not, he should have been able to kill the girl. The redhead took his pride in his capacity for murdering anyone he chose without a second thought. Men, women, geezers, children... It didn't quite matter who they were. Well, perhaps he should cross children from the list. They were no fun at all, and it was definitely more fun to wait till they grow up and be at least some challenge. The girl was also such case. In her present state, she could only catch his attention briefly. At least he had thought so before. As it turned out the girl in her sleep proved to be a temptation of some kind, and he yielded to it only to discover that amongst many other confusing and conflicting feelings haunting him there was no place for the real intent to harm her. That was why he had finally assailed her, in a futile attempt to strangle life out of her and make those annoying black eyes stay shut from now on.

A low growl rumbling at the back of his throat, Gaara collected the facts he had established earlier. It was apparent the girl had something in herself that caused his thoughts to go back to her now and then. Once within his sight, he could feel it even more intensely; the urge to get closer to her. If he would surrender, every step he would take towards her would bring some kind of relief but also build an alien kind of tension. Last night, he had decided to see what would have happened if he got really close. He had sat just a few steps from her sleeping form, discovering that it felt better when she wasn't aware of his presence. He could scrutinize her serene features for as long as he needed, still trying to answer the nagging question.

_What is going on with me?_

And then she had stirred slightly, wide awake in an instant after she had realized that he had been near. Her features hadn't been tranquil anymore, reflecting the same old fear, which resided in all the people who had got to know the jinchūriki of Suna. However, she had insisted he would let her live. She hadn't begged nor made a loud, pointless lament for herself. She had only pointed out that she had a purpose. Was it likely that such reason alone could stop him from erasing her existence from the world? The reason similar to his own, even if only a little—

Gaara came to a sudden halt. The characteristic tingling in his fingertips interrupted his musings, and it meant that someone entered the small area where he'd been working on his new technique a day prior. The redhead still couldn't tell a number of wanderers or precisely sense their chakra but his Suna no Kanchi seemed to have a great potential nonetheless. Carefully avoiding the area, he decided to retreat to his hideout. After he would be securely concealed in the cave, he would send his Daisan np Me to spy on the strangers instead.

Gaara ducked into the canyon, where his hideout was located. A trace of bare footprints went from the hideout into the desert, and he furrowed, scrutinizing them. There was also another trace of footprints leading down into the canyon, and he recognized the girl's sandals. He decided to leave resolving the mystery for later and went down, scanning the canyon thoroughly. Nothing was out of place except for a girl who should be in the desert right now, training. Gaara watched her as she carried the bucket filled with water into the cave, and followed her swiftly, planning to warn her not to go anywhere. Her back was facing him when he entered the cave, and she was fumbling with something over the bucket. The water splashed a little and the girl sighed quietly, pushing her hair from an obviously sweaty forehead. Gaara approached her, for some reason unwilling to reveal his presence not to disturb her apparent ease. However, she turned around the next moment, freezing in shock as her eyes spotted him standing just several feet behind her.

Her steps wobbly, she tried her best to ignore him, as his gaze swept over her suspiciously. Not knowing the reason for her nervousness, which he didn't mistake for her usual fear, he quickly scanned the cave but again nothing was off. He glanced at the bucket while the girl grasped the jagged mug. The water looked turbid a little and Gaara narrowed his eyes for the closer inspection. The girl went past him and scooped some water with the mug, and then he finally noticed the pieces of cloth wrapped around her feet.

Gaara eyed her up and down, his gaze unblinking. The girl's appearance was slightly ruffled and she looked pretty tired yet determined as she sipped the water, glancing at him from over the mug. This screamed for the further investigation but the faint sensation tickling Gaara's fingertips began to subside and he knew he didn't have much time.

"Get out," he murmured. "I need to focus."

With that, he turned his palm inside up, gathering the sand necessary to create the eye. The girl shook slightly as she moved past him obediently. He didn't spare a glimpse at her as he sent his eye flying towards its destination. Pressing his fingers against his closed eyelid to set up the connection, he scooped the water with his hand and drank it absent-mindedly, repeating an action a few times until he wasn't thirsty anymore. By then, his eye had already found the group of ninjas moving across the desert. No mistake about it; they were jōnins and chūnins from Sunagakure. They were on the mission, apparently, and Gaara wasn't particularly troubled with their presence until they settled on the sand as if waiting for something. They would never stop over in the middle of the desert, especially when it was close to noon. Gaara suspected they had found his hideout and discussed about possible ways to corner him. Even if he was being more paranoid than usual, it was still better to watch them, and the redhead sat down on the sandy cave floor with his legs crossed, mentally preparing to spend the next few hours watching his enemies' steps.

Absorbed with his task, Gaara didn't notice at first the suspicious, weird numbness creeping into his bones. Only when his vision grew blurry, knocking him off his near-stupor, he realized something was wrong with his body. His limbs felt stiff and unyielding to his will, and the cave seemed to grow much darker than it was supposed to at this hour. The next moment, Gaara remembered the girl's manoeuvres over the water bucket, and his stomach sank. Gritting his teeth, he tried to pull himself to the sitting position. All he accomplished was collapsing onto the floor as his hands refused to support him properly. He made a faint attempt at crawling but the paralysis caught his entire frame in its tenacious grasp. Before the poison forced his mind to shut down, Gaara vaguely remembered that the girl drank the water, too.  _Serves her right_ , he thought, only to realize she wouldn't probably go as far as to poison herself to death in her endeavors to get rid of him altogether.

Which obviously meant the council wanted to take him alive.

**The end of the chapter 26.**

**The next c** **hapter:** **Stupid**

Suna no Kanchi=Sand Sensing


	26. Stupid

**  
The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 27. Stupid~**

Lying on her back, Matsuri could feel the gusts of wind blowing the sand dust into her face. Unfortunately, she couldn't do anything to shield herself from it. The drug she had imbibed left her without control over her body. After temporary lost of consciousness she had recovered only to find out that the paralysis didn't cease. Defenceless, she lay for what seemed to be years, waiting for Suna ninjas to come and scoop her and the monster's numb bodies to deliver them to the village.

She exchanged her life for the monster. Betraying him, she earned the right to be left alone and live in Suna if willing. It wasn't hard decision to make, not even mentioning that she didn't actually have a choice. She would never try to protect the monster or hide him from justice. If she could accomplish freedom in the process, she would gladly reveal every last bit of information on his location, and that was what she exactly did, without a second thought or sense of guilt. Her only concern was about him recovering too soon from the effects of the soporific, which would make all her efforts futile.

When the ninjas finally appeared, Matsuri wanted to cry from happiness. Unable to flicker her lids open, she only listened to the noises they started to make once they confirmed that the monster was dormant and temporarily incapable. They dragged his body out of the cave, and administered what most likely was another dose of the drug to him. Then they began to talk about her, and the conversation definitely wasn't about what Matsuri would expect it to be.

"What about the girl? We don't need her anymore," a male voice pondered.

There was a sound of the feet shuffling against the sand as the ninjas started walking away with their red-headed prey.

"Get rid of her," someone said. "Bury her in the cave."

Matsuri's heart jumped to her throat and was stuck there, choking her. She tried in vain to open her eyes but her eyelids were heavy as if made of lead. She couldn't lift them no matter how hard she tried.

"We'll catch up with you later," the voice uttered indifferently.

 _Stupid_ , Matsuri could only think as they grabbed her arms and dragged her into the cave where the air was different, and the breeze waned.  _I was so stupid to believe them._

"What do we do?" the voice asked somewhere above her head.

A response was short. "What about having some fun?"

"Fun? But this is only a kid, Fuka."

The sand rippled at Matsuri's left, and unwelcome hands moved up and down her body.

"Not anymore," the intruder commented with a sick mirth. "Besides, what do you think she was doing here with the monster?"

"You serious? This kid and him?"

"Why not? Teen raging hormones, y'know. The monster tried to rape his sister from what I have heard. Quite morbid if you ask me."

There was a distinctive snort from someone standing at Matsuri's feet. "Look who's talking."

The voice from before snarled impatiently. "If you say so. What about fun?"

"Why ask me? Just go on and have it. I'll be waiting outside."

The sound of his footsteps muffled by sand, one of the men headed for the exit. The next moment, Matsuri thought to herself that she might have been sadly mistaken considering Sabaku no Gaara the worst monster in the world.

**The end of the chapter 27.**

**The next chapter:** **Surprised**

Fuka is an OC. In japanese ' fuka ' means amongst others _wrong, bad, improper, unjustifiable, inadvisable_.


	27. Surprised

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 28. Surprised~**

Matsuri didn't want to wake up. The darkness behind her eyelids was cold but somehow welcome. No violence there, no hurt. Her nightmarish life would be finally over if she could only plunge a little deeper. However, the ultimate relief was another thing she had been denied. Her body was pulling her back, grumbling at her to come back and take care of it. Her mind seemed to be wrapped up with thick layers of cotton wool, which were disappearing one by one so she could settle inside her body again.

Awakening felt awful. Matsuri's entire body ached like she had been flogged. Curled into a ball, she was closed in some kind of round wooden trunk. She tried to disentangle her legs and arms but it proved to be near impossible since an entire bin she had been locked in was moving up and down in a steady pace. At first, she was too bemused to be scared. Last time she checked she had been in the cave. Paralyzed, she had been lying on the sand while the monster - and she hadn't meant Gaara that time - was working on pulling her pants down. The next moment, she was locked inside the barrel rolling down the paved road.

Only there were no pavements in Suna.

Matsuri couldn't decide what to do. Apparently, she had been saved from being raped by some miraculous appearance. Even if her entire body hurt, its certain parts didn't; at least, not as much as they would surely have if they had been violated. But still, the part of the mystery remained. Was it an ally or a foe who had scooped her numb frame and carried it away from the cave? It could take only to scream or thump her fists against the wooden walls to find out what had exactly happened. But for some reason she was reluctant to give away that she had fully recovered from the drug's effects.

She tried to distinguish the noises from the outside instead, but there was only a fast, steady rhythm of soft pats accompanying the jerking movements of her prison. Matsuri recognized the noise immediately. It was a sound of somebody's footsteps against the sand.

Matsuri held her breath if only for a second. The next moment, another jolt forced the air out of her lungs. However, the hope and disbelief remained. She reasoned with herself that there could be more people using wooden puppets. Sunagakure had always been quite famous for its Puppet Corps after all. But why would any random puppeteer take her with him instead of following orders and killing her once the monster had been captured? She had no clue. For that reason, she couldn't entirely extinguish the hope. Arguing with herself that there was absolutely no reason Kankurō would come to his brother's hideout all of a sudden, Matsuri finally found an answer when the bounces stopped. The wooden planks swung aside, letting in some light, and she squinted, shielding her eyes against the brightness with her hand. There was a dark, blurry silhouette in the middle of the glow, and Matsuri desperately tried to bring the stranger's face into focus.

"Matsuri?" the female voice called her name with worry, and Matsuri felt relief wash over her in warm waves as she recognized Temari's voice. "Let's get you out of here," the kunoichi continued, and pulled the younger girl out of the puppet. Matsuri winced while Temari's fingers unintentionally dug into her bruises, and rose to a standing position at last. "Here." Temari shoved the mug into her hands. "Drink."

Matsuri glanced at the water suspiciously. Temari noticed her obvious reluctance and took the mug back, swallowing a few gulps before she gave it to Matsuri, wordlessly showing her to drink.

The younger girl pursed her lips, thinking. Temari shrugged in response and turned to her brother, her teal eyes demanding and impatient.

"The council's plan succedeed," Kankurō explained in short, clipped sentences. "The pursuers managed to seize Gaara, and took him back to the village."

Temari bit her lower lip, nodding. She glanced at Matsuri, who had finally decided to take a small sip of water by then.

"I was going to search the cave where Gaara had been obviously hiding," Kankurō said as if replying to Temari's mute questions. "I heard voices speaking." He let out a scornful snort. "Fumei and Fuka," he added, and Temari's lips curled in disgust. The puppeteer's gaze flickered at Matsuri as she rubbed her shoulder absent-mindedly, staring at the siblings.

"Why didn't you come?" Matsuri shot suddenly, her fingers tightening on the mug. "I thought you would come and bring me back. You told me you would take me in, and I ended up living with the monster instead." The girl's knuckles whitened. "You were just lying, weren't you?" she accused. "Just like anybody else."

Temari blinked, surprised.

"You mean, you've been with Gaara?"

Matsuri shrugged.

"Why would I tell you anything?" she replied, walking away to put the mug on the table.

"What about showing some gratitude for saving your—" Kankurō murmured, and his unspoken words hung in the air.

Matsuri flinched slightly, her shoulders tense. "Answer to my questions, and I will answer to yours," she said after a pause. Turning around, she briefly scanned the familiar surroundings. They were in the hut where she had lived with the siblings not so long ago. However, it felt to her as if it had been a lifetime since then.

"We don't have time—" the puppeteer began, and his sister held her open hand up, as if telling him to cease speaking. Kankurō slanted a glance at her, and she nodded slowly.

"We only managed to cover up your tracks a little," Temari started explaining, her expression calm and thoughtful. "We wanted to mislead any pursuit, and bring you back later. "The kunoichi's fingers grazed against her folded fan. "Then the Kazekage summoned us. We couldn't disobey."

Matsuri leaned her bottom against the table and crossed her arms, watching the siblings wordlessly, her eyes narrowed. Only when she realized she had just adopted the monster's attitude, she lowered her hands quickly.

"What did he call you on to do?" she pressed.

"We can't tell you," Kankurō interjected immediately. "There are things we can't reveal to anyone. We would be punished if we did otherwise."

Matsuri wondered if she cared at all about siblings' supposed punishment. Finally, she shrugged and sat down on the floor with her legs crossed. She should have known better than to rely on ninjas to help her. Temari and Kankurō, even if willing to look after her, were still ninjas. Their loyalty lay in the village first. Everything else would always come second.

"Why save me, then?" she inquired wearily. "Won't it end up with the punishment, too?"

The puppeteer looked bewildered.

"It was a right thing to do," he muttered at last, rubbing the side of his nose with his index finger. "Besides, I thought you might deliver some intel on Gaara."

That incited Matsuri's instant curiosity.

"I dosed him with the drug," she admitted bluntly. "They said they would let me return to the village if I helped capture the monster." The corner of her lips curled in a disdainful smirk. "Apparently, they lied," she added cynically, her fingertips drawing spirals in the thin layer of sand dust covering the floor.

Temari's alarmed eyes snapped to Kankurō's face.

"What do you mean, the drug?" the puppeteer insisted, leaning forward with a grave expression. "Did they poison him?"

"The poison wasn't meant to be lethal," Matsuri explained indifferently, watching her bruised knees with half-hearted interest. "They wanted to take him alive."

The siblings held their breath, staring at each other in silence. The younger girl gazed up at them. Temari closed her eyes, breaking the eye contact with her brother, and pressed her fingers against her temples. Kankurō turned a little so Matsuri could see only his profile, the muscles in his jaw visibly working. Both of the siblings looked like some kind of an overdue realization hit them. The next moment, their gazes reconnected, fiery and determined.

"Listen carefully, Matsuri," Kankurō said in a hushed tone. "We can no longer take you in. I'm sorry. Suna is not a safe place for you, just as you have said earlier. You can't stay here. Do not go westwards like you did before. It would be the best if you took a roundabout route to Kawa no Kuni."

Matsuri glanced at him, listening even more carefully to what he didn't say. "Roundabout route?" she repeated. "You mean, via Hi no Kuni?"

The puppeteer shrugged. "Whatever," he said impatiently. "We'll get you some rations and water—"

"Wouldn't be there any pursuers?" she asked conversationally. "I happen to be quite a wanted person lately, found guilty of a crime of knowing too much," she continued to Kankurō's apparent surprise. "Yes, I gathered as much," she snorted faintly at his dumbstruck expression. "The monster - that is your brother - helped me put all the pieces together."

"Gaara did?" Temari furrowed with disbelief but Matsuri only waved a dismissive hand at her question, her eyes sticking to Kankurō's face.

"Most likely, no," the puppeteer replied to the question Matsuri had asked before interruption. "They will be busy with... something else."

Matsuri pursed her lips, her eyes staring into space as she nodded to herself knowingly. "I'm willing to help in case you deemed it necessary," she said slowly, her resolve strengthening once she had spoken those words aloud, and the siblings shot confused glimpses at her. "Are you going to leave him here and go back to the village so your absence wouldn't be noticed?" Matsuri went on, her words causing Temari slightly wobble on her feet.

"What are you talking about?" Kankurō inquired, skillfully concealing shock behind an emotionless façade.

Matsuri smirked in response. "First you say you don't have time, then you start playing games," she commented. "I'm talking about your brother, of course. You're going to try to save him, aren't you?"

The siblings gasped in unison, and Matsuri leaned backwards a bit, pondering. This or either way, they would need some time to recover and question her decision. Prior to that, Matsuri needed to answer some questions herself. Why would she even want to participate in a rescue operation? She hated the monster, and gladly brought that misery upon him. Maybe it would do some good to him to get a taste of his own medicine. However, there were people Matsuri abhorred even more than him, and they happened to be the village's councilmen, Jōseki in particular. Matsuri would do anything to thwart their plans.

Literally anything.

**The end of the chapter 28.**

**The next c** **hapter: Helpful**

Fuka was an OC. In japanese 'fuka' means amongst others _wrong, bad, improper, unjustifiable, inadvisable._  
Fumei was also an OC. In japanese 'fumei' means amongst others _unknown, obscure, indistinct, uncertain._


	28. Helpful

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 29. Helpful~**

There was a long silence in the hut after Matsuri's blunt question. The siblings stared at her in shock, and Temari wondered how come Matsuri managed to guess what they were going to do. Apparently, the girl was quick to perceive, but it was still surprising, to say the least. Temari chastised herself inwardly for giving the unmentionable away. She supposed she had been caught off guard because she didn't try her best to mask the truth with indifference. It was a mistake. Matsuri shouldn't be underestimated, obviously.

The siblings' attempt on saving Gaara should be top secret. No one was supposed to know about it. However, Matsuri realized what was on their minds. Moreover, she offered to help. Temari couldn't understand it. She wanted to ask questions but if she did she would only confirm Matsuri's guess. She wondered if it wouldn't be for the best to pretend that Matsuri was mistaken. Matsuri was supposed to leave the country, after all. She would never know what happened to Gaara. Actually, Temari wasn't even sure that she and Kankurō could do anything to prevent the ritual, or in the worst case interrupt it. If they were going to fail, there would be nothing that could be done about it. If they were going to succeed, it would be essential to hide the truth from anyone.

"What are they going to do to him?" Matsuri inquired, glancing from Temari to Kankurō. "They wanted to take him alive. What will they do?"

The puppeteer glimpsed at his anxious sister. He was also aware that their time was almost up. However, they needed to play their cards carefully if they wanted the misdirection work.

"They're going to perform an unsealing ritual," he explained warily.

Matsuri blinked, bewildered. "Unsealing?" she repeated.

Kankurō nodded, quite unwilling to elaborate. Temari urged to clench her fists but she managed to resist.

"What does it mean?" Matsuri pressed.

"Why are you asking these questions?" Kankurō snapped impatiently. "You should leave immediately if you don't want to be caught."

The younger girl nodded knowingly. "Ah. You don't believe me. You think I'm into another scheme." She glared. "I helped poison him. Stupid me. Actually, the village never meant to let me in. That's why I want to help saving him from whatever they want to do to him."

Temari thought it kind of made sense. "Is it your revenge, then?" she asked.

Matsuri didn't answer immediately. "A part of it," she admitted at last, her expression cautious.

Temari swayed on her feet and started pacing to and fro, her thoughts continuously reaching towards Gaara. Did the ritual started already? How much time was actually left before they would take the bijū out of her brother?

Apparently, Matsuri could read her mind.

"What this ritual will do to him?" the brunette inquired impatiently. "Is it dangerous?"

Temari closed her eyes momentarily, preparing to speak in a controlled voice. "Once the ritual is complete, Gaara will die."

**The end of the chapter 29.**

**The next c** **hapter:** **Determined**


	29. Determined

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 30. Determined~**

Temari thought not so long ago that Kankurō was her brother and Gaara was just Gaara. It seemed there was no bond between her and her youngest sibling except for the blood relation. Even if she would be willing - and she definitely wasn't - she couldn't get closer to him. He was just like their father, and she had long since lost any hope to get something more than chiding cold words from the two. They were perfectly fine on their own, each one enclosed within an invisible bubble distorting an image of the outside world. Thankfully, Temari could at least form a bond with Kankurō. Maybe the bond wasn't exactly what she wanted it to be but she was still satisfied with it.

Never thinking about her feelings towards Gaara let alone naming them, Temari had been stupefied when she realized she couldn't carry the mission 1023098. It was not about the difference between their powers, at least not entirely. Temari feared Gaara, or rather Shukaku, but she couldn't actually bring herself to even think of murdering the boy who had once been a shy and eager to please child.

At first, Temari berated herself but it didn't help at all, and she decided that she simply had to accept the truth, disturbing as it was. The fate worked to her advantage still, and she didn't have to fight Gaara nor she suffered any harm from his hands. Naturally, Gaara didn't appreciate her sentiments but she found out that she didn't care anymore. Whatever he would say or do couldn't shake her resolution. It didn't matter anymore, either, that she was a poor ninja by Sunagakure standards. A model ninja would stick to the main rule, which said that the accomplishment of the mission was prior to ninja's lives, their personal beliefs and emotions, and any bonds or relationships they might want to maintain.

Temari decided she could live with being a poor ninja but she couldn't live with her brother's blood on her hands, period.

The kunoichi shook her head as if trying to disperse the thoughts. She had no time for brooding. The decision had been made already. She had left the hut with Kankurō by her side, Matsuri staying behind.

The rescue team for Sabaku no Gaara.

The two siblings traveled across the desert with an exceeding speed. However, the sun had already set when they reached the needed spot. The cliffs were still far away but the guards were surely watching so the siblings doubled their efforts to remain unnoticed. They were supposed to be on the mission, after all.

Baki had sent them away from the village, oblivious to the fact they had known already about plots including Gaara. The council planned to retrieve Shukaku at the cost of Gaara's life. Afraid that his siblings would interfere, the Kazekage had assigned a difficult mission to them at the council's instigation.

Temari shook her head again. Baki had said to her before that he always seemed to underestimate them. And then he did it again. Difficult as it was, the mission had been quickly completed by Temari alone, while Kankurō had followed the pursuers. The siblings couldn't imagine at first how exactly the council would want to capture Gaara. As it turned out, it was where Matsuri had come into the picture. She had helped to poison Gaara only to deny her own actions later by declaring her willingness to help saving him from the council's hands.

Talk about changing one's mind.

The siblings froze motionless as they sensed rather than heard a faint noise far on the left. Kankurō sneaked his hand into the pouch and took out a large piece of a thin fabric. Temari lay down on the sand and her brother followed her, hiding them with Kakuremino no Jutsu.

Ten minutes later, a lonely Suna ninja strolled past them. As he walked down the valley between the dunes, the poisoned senbon hit the side of his neck. The ninja made a few wobbling steps more and toppled over, paralyzed.

Careful not to walk within his target's sight, Kankurō approached the inert body. He blindfolded the ninja and beckoned Temari, releasing his disguising technique. The siblings took the ninja and deposited him inside the narrow rock crevice to the south of the village.

"How long does it take until Suname recovers?" Temari asked in a whisper once they went away from the crevice.

"Three hours full if he weighs 130 lbs," Kankurō mouthed, his eyes scanning the vicinity.

Temari nodded.  _He certainly doesn't_ , she thought.  _It is two and half an hour, then._ _Not too much time_ _, I suppose_ _, but I hope that_ _w_ _e can still save Gaara._

 **The end of the chapter** **30** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:** **Of all times**


	30. Of all times

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 31. Of all times~**

The small, pale body stretched out on the long rough table was looking so fragile and innocent that Baki's throat shrank momentarily. He had already forgotten how small Gaara was, and he didn't have time to muse over it any longer.

As the Kazekage, he had work to do.

His arms crossed over his chest and his head lowered, he clenched his eyelids and pursed his lips.

"Bring Chiyo-baasama," he commanded at last. "She's certainly done preparing by now."

There were a few jōnins in a room, and one of them went out, shutting the door noiselessly. Baki listened to his quiet footsteps, wondering how long it would take before Chiyo arrived.

These were the last several minutes of Gaara's life.

Baki looked back, recalling seeing Gaara for the first time. He remembered thinking that the boy looked rather harmless. The impression had vanished pretty quickly though, once Baki saw with his own eyes the real power of the demon sealed inside the tiny redhead.

He had never thought of Gaara as harmless again.

As a teacher and a team captain, Baki had been initially surprised at Gaara's sadistic tendencies. At first, he had thought the demon was to blame until he realized it was actually Gaara himself who reveled in mindless bloodshed.

Sadly, there was no way to convert the boy. Baki knew it better than majority of the people, and he knew better than indulging himself in a futile hope. Gaara truly was untameable. There was nothing anyone could do to turn him back from the path of madness.

The door flung open and a few ninjas ran inside, panting. The Kazekage furrowed, instantly alarmed, as he spotted the marks of the battle - the cuts and gashes, burned flak jackets, and weapons ready for attack.

"Kazekage-sama! We're under attack!" they barked, and Baki's heart sank.  _Of all times!_  he thought, cursing inwardly.

A few ANBU guards appeared by the Kazekage's side, obviously to protect him. Baki's hands grew sweaty but he forced himself to keep his cool.

"What village?" he drawled, gritting his teeth.

"There are two attackers in total! Only one of them is wearing hitai-ate! We haven't confirmed yet what village they are from!" Kashike blurted out, using his thumb to wipe away the thin streak of blood from his chin.

Baki blinked, wondering if he had just misheard.

"Two attackers?" he repeated, dumbfounded. "Are you sure?"

"They're formidable ninjas, Kazekage-sama," the masked ANBU murmured quietly. "They easily brought many of our best people down."

Baki quickly weighed his options. "Where's Chiyo-baasama?" he inquired impatiently. "She ought to be done preparing already!"

One of the jōnins ran out, apparently to search for Chiyo. Only a few minutes later, he went back, following an old lady. She greeted the Kazekage with a nod, and strolled towards the table. "It's quite a ruckus out there," she remarked conversationally, waving her hand.

"Yes, the village is under attack," Baki replied quickly. "Chiyo-baasama, can we start with the ritual?"

The old woman stepped closer to the table, eyeing the jinchūriki's body. "It'll take a long time," she announced with a sigh, rolling up her sleeves. "Make sure that nobody interferes."

With a nod, Baki cast a glance at Gaara and left the room.

 **The end of the chapter** **3** **1** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:** **Konbi Henge**


	31. Konbi Henge

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter 32. Konbi Henge~**

The lonely ninja approached Sunagakure cliffs from the west, his pace steady until he heard the noises from behind the cliffs. Any ninja would recognize those noises immediately.

There was a massive battle going on inside.

The man came to an uncertain halt, and an ANBU ninja emerged by his side. "What's going on there?" Suname asked, furrowing, his hand glued to the pouch.

"We're under attack," the ANBU replied, his low voice muffled by the mask covering his entire face. "Two attackers, most likely powerful nukenins. We haven't confirmed still what their goal is."

Suname nodded formally in silence. His expression gave away his doubt but he didn't voice it. He only followed the ANBU across the dunes.

They jumped up and down the cliff. Once they reached the bottom, the ANBU disappeared.

The air above the village was thick with smoke and poisoning gas, and it was obvious that the enemy had an upper hand. Suname stood still, taking the scene in, as he bit his lower lip. Finally, he ran along the cliff until he found a large alcove. Crawling inside, he channelled his chakra into the sand, and drove into it.

The battle on the surface continued. Many Suna ninjas fell victim to an overwhelming power of the enemy. The Kazekage himself started fighting despite protests of his guards. Gradually, it became apparent that the attackers were trying to get to the certain building where the jinchūriki was still confined.

The defenders doubled their efforts to keep the enemy at bay. In the meantime, Suname emerged from under the ground nearby the building. Unnoticed, he sneaked inside and into the basement, where he froze in shock.

The entire squad, which was to protect the place, had been skillfully slaughtered. The dead silence reigned in the corridor, and the suffocating coppery smell wafted in the air. The ninja stayed motionless until he heard voices. He couldn't distinguish the words but there was obviously a heated argument. The next moment, the door at the end of the corridor exploded with a rain of splinters, and the man wearing Sunagakure flak jacket landed on the floor as if he had been blown away from the inside.

Recognizing Yūra, the councilman, Suname merged into the wall, using Kakuremino no Jutsu, and waited, lurking at the back of the corridor. Apparently, Yūra was fighting the person who had slain the guards. As a fellow ninja, Suname was obliged to help the jōnin. However, he didn't move.

Yūra scrambled to his feet and staggered, coughing and sputtering blood. He pressed his hand against his side, and wiped his face with the back of his hand, watching Chiyo-baasama as she emerged from the doorway, her fingers twitching as two puppets hovered by her sides.

"Whom do you serve?" she growled with a stern expression, dispatching the puppets, for he didn't answer.

Yūra was a formidable ninja but he was no match against Chiyo. Once done with rendering him defenseless, she made the puppet pin him to the ground with serrated katana. As a skilled medic ninja, Chiyo could easily stab any opponent without causing life-threatening damage.

" _Whom do you serve?_ " the old woman repeated as she stepped forward. "What business do you have with the jinchūriki?"

Silent, Yūra grasped the blade stuck into his body and tried to draw it out. Suname could hear the jōnin's quiet grunts. Making a quick decision not to hide any longer, Suname discarded the technique and stepped forward.

"It's you," Chiyo remarked, slanting a glance at him.

Suname bowed his head. "Chiyo-baasama, we're under attack. The enemy is trying to get the jinchūriki. I am to take him to a safe place by Kazekage-sama's orders. We'll start with the ritual again once the foes will have been thrown back."

Chiyo narrowed her eyes suspiciously. With a sharp movement of her hand, the puppet leaning over Yūra swatted his temple, and his arms drooped to the floor with a thud. "There could be more spies amongst us," she muttered. "You could be one of them, too."

Suname nodded. "They can't hold the enemy for too long," he said without addressing her words about him being a spy. "We need to take the jinchūriki away."

Chiyo sent a puppet into the room, and it emerged a moments later, carrying a limp body. Suname's expression didn't change at all as he watched the sand shrouding the body, mixed with reddish swirls of malicious chakra.

"Do not touch the jinchūriki," Chiyo warned. "The unsealing ritual has been interrupted, and his chakra is greatly unbalanced, now. Either it gets stable or the demon's chakra overcomes."

"And what if—?" Suname ventured.

"Then it's over."

 **The end of the chapter** **3** **2** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:** **The c** **rumbling walls**

Konbi Henge = an advanced form of Henge no Jutsu, allowing users to transform two users into one (vide Naruto and Gamabunta in their fight against Gaara)

Moguragakure no Jutsu = an easy Earth Release technique, allowing the user to make the earth (or sand) finer in order to dig through it

Yūra = a jōnin-level ninja, Sunagakure councilman, and Sasori's sleeping agent


	32. The crumbling walls

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **3** **3.** **The c** **rumbling walls** **~**

Sabaku no Gaara was used to having untreatable headaches. Since his earliest childhood the demon dwelling inside him repeatedly pursued attacks on his integrity that were inevitably coupled with massive migraines. That on itself would be enough to drive anyone insane; enduring hours of incessant, splitting pain, week by week, year by year. Gradually, the redhead concluded that only being docile to Shukaku's demands could save him from that hell. Relieved, he completely obeyed his 'mother', never thinking of what would happen if he would ever stop. Actually, he had been certain that he wouldn't have to stop. His father would had seen to it. Whenever Gaara would had gone go on rampage, his father would have been there to put an end to it, trying to fix any damage after the demon would had been subdued.

Even hating the man from the bottom of his heart, Gaara never imagined that his father could fail, let alone fail  _and_  fall.

It wasn't supposed to be that way. Yondaime Kazekage was supposed to live, to witness and suffer the consequences of what he had done to his youngest child. Gaara would never forget the day when he had found his father's body rotting in the desert. The fury had almost suffocated him; how dared he, the mighty Suna no Kazekage, rest in peace while his son was still alive and therefore suffering?

It was exactly on that day when Gaara realized he couldn't allow Shukaku take over anymore. Since then, the headaches came back with a full force as the beast tested his host's strength endlessly. Sometimes the breakthrough was close, sometimes not. However, the bijū couldn't get what he wanted.

Ever again.

Gaara didn't know what exactly happened this time but if anything was obvious, it was another Shukaku's crazy attempt at wrenching free going on inside his head. Only it was worst than ever. His eyes felt like burning, and his skull has been certainly split open with Baki's Kaze no Yaiba. Clenching his teeth made it even worse but it was still better than biting his tongue off.

Everything except for pain was a blur, and Gaara couldn't even see his surroundings properly. Trying to collect his senses was pointless either. All he could do was breathe, and every trembling, groaning breath was laboured and painful.

Gaara would beg for death if he didn't swear to himself long ago that he would never ever allow himself to seek any comfort. He concluded that suffering was his fate, and all he could hope for was instilling exactly the same suffering into the world.

Something felt different though. Different from previous headaches. This time, the pain seemed to trickle down his neck and into his chest, clawing at his internal organs before it spread into his entire body, making it the hardest test he had ever been put to.

Gaara knew that the physical pain was able to kill a person, especially if their heart was weak. Thankfully - or unfortunately - he had never been the case. Time always seemed to stand still while he lived through hell until the very end, his mind filling with warped, bloody images of what he would do to the people who had ever had a hand in driving him to this agony.

This time, the pain was too strong to allow him to focus on the images. Shukaku was roaring and forceful, as the shackles binding him to the wall threatened to crack. Gaara had been in the beast's cave only once before, and it had been one of the most terrifying experiences in his life. He had been still innocent, then, when the sand demon had lured him into the depths of his own mind, into the wasteland where there was only sand and heat. Gaara hadn't known what had happened to him but he had listened to the alluring voice, whispering the promises of comfort. Naive child as he had been, he had gone into the cave, only to face an embodiment of terror.

Bound with chains that looked too weak to be able to hold him in place, the sand demon had stood in the giant cave, glancing down at his host. Gaara hadn't realized at first that he had gone down to the subconscious level, into a place where the demon's chakra sealed into him could take physical form. He had been certain he had entered Shukaku's lair somehow, and it had scared him enough to allow him to knock himself out of the trance. Only then, he had realized what had actually happened. He had realized that the wasteland, the cave, and the demon were all inside him; an inseparable part of him.

He hadn't gone there since then but he had never forgotten how the place looked like, how it sounded and smelled. Finding himself in the cave again, Gaara could feel the same terror seeping through him. Shukaku was struggling against the chains, growling and rumbling, its golden eyes glaring at his host. Only this time, the shackles seemed to be loosened a little, as the beast's attempts caused the cave wall to crack slightly. Petrified, Gaara watched the crumbling rock, wondering what would happen if the chains would finally come apart.

 **The end of the chapter** **3** **3** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:** **The girl**

 


	33. The girl

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **3** **4.** **The girl** **~**

Gaara grunted.

_Water._

_Someone. Anyone._

_Will kill for the glass of water— No. Will not kill for the glass of water._

He hadn't felt this awful for quite a long time. He was sore, hurting, exhausted, thirsty, and above all else, he felt utterly insecure. He didn't know where he was or how much time had passed since the recent fit started.

In other words, he was defenseless like a newborn baby.

His body had been rendered useless but his mind thankfully wasn't, and Gaara began to remember. He had been in the cave, watching Suna ninjas hovering about his hideout. He had spied on them with his sand eye while the girl...  _The girl!_

Where nothing else helped, anger did. Gaara pulled himself to a sitting position vehemently, his eyes scanning the place frantically. To his utter astonishment, he found out that he was in the hut where he had been living with his siblings several weeks prior. Someone had put him down in the corner, wrapping him in a thin blanket. There even was a jug filled with water placed next to him, and Gaara reached for it, only to remember how he had been poisoned not so long ago. Withdrawing his hand, he looked around carefully until he spotted the girl. She was sitting against the opposite wall, her head hanging on her chest in sleep, and Gaara gasped at the sight, trembling with fury. Splaying his fingers, he intended to use his trademark technique to erase the girl's existence from the world, but he resigned even before the sand would move.

This time, he wanted to rip her throat off with his bare hands.

The redhead fumbled with the blanket, his hands shivering. Weak as he was, he wouldn't let what she had done to him slip. Finally, he got rid of the annoying cocoon, and threw the blanket away. He barely registered that he didn't have his clothes on but he couldn't care less as he attempted to stand. Apparently, it was too much for him. His wobbly legs gave up, and he landed on his back with a surprised yelp. The blanket he had shoved away before prevented him from hitting the floor but his head didn't seem to take it well as his temples felt like being squeezed with white-hot pincers. Gaara sucked the harsh breath through his teeth, screaming profanities as he tried to scramble to his feet once more.

The girl shifted at the commotion he caused, and snapped her eyelids open. The next moment, she jumped to her feet, gesturing wildly in silence as if lost for words. Gaara bared his teeth, impatient to make her bleed to death, ignoring the excruciating pain piercing through his skull.

"You shouldn't move!" the girl stuttered out finally. "Temari-san said you'll be in danger if you try anything!"

Mentioning Temari's name caused Gaara pause for a while, and the girl took advantage of it immediately. "Listen, there's not much time," she stammered out. "We have to get away from here as fast as possible. The drug's effects still didn't wear off, and your chakra is greatly unbalanced—"

Gaara recovered from confusion in a few minutes, and finally pulled himself to a standing position, his back leaning flush against the wall.

"I will kill you!" he roared, his fingers crooked, and the girl shook her head, retreating towards the exit.

"Temari-san said that if you don't get enough rest or if you try to perform any ninjutsu, the demon will most likely come out!" she shouted, the words emerging so quickly that he was barely able to understand. However, he certainly caught something about the demon coming out, and he furrowed even if still boiling with rage.

"Give me five minutes, okay?" the girl pleaded, her tone utterly desperate as if she was within a wild lion's cage, trying to tame the beast. "I'll explain. Listen. Temari-san and Kankurō-san brought you here. They had to go back to the village but don't try to follow them. They said you have to leave Kaze no Kuni or you'll be captured sooner or later—" She broke off, her chest heaving. Wiping her sweaty forehead with the back of her palm, her gaze slightly insane, she leaned against the wall next to the exit. "There had been an attempt to rip the demon out of you," she continued quickly, and Gaara listened with his eyes narrowed, hardly able to stand without support. "Temari-san and Kankurō-san saved you," the girl informed him, and went out through the open door.

"Get back!" Gaara yelled but it was obvious that she wouldn't obey anymore. "Get back!" he repeated although he knew better than to use any technique to drag her back to the hut. The girl knew he wouldn't do that, too. She was aware that at the moment he could do nothing more than throw a tantrum. For that, she ran away, certainly happy she didn't have to associate with him anymore.

Gaara's expression changed as he smirked nastily to himself, sliding down until he sat down on the floor. Unbelievable as it was, his siblings and the girl had obviously gulled an entire village in a successful attempt to prevent his death. How touching.

The smirk turned into deranged grin, as the redhead looked around, searching for his clothes.

He couldn't let their performance go to waste, after all.

**The end of the chapter 3** **4** **.**

**The next c** **hapter** **: The musings** **  
**

 


	34. The musings

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **3** **5.** **The musings** **~**

The tomb was looking exactly like other ones. A plain, white, smooth stone with only her name carved in it. Naturally, in years to come it would inevitably change. The blazing sun and the desert winds would work together over it until it would erode, and the name would gradually vanish.

But now, the inscription was still perfectly legible.  _Chiyo_ , it said.

Baki has been standing in front of the grave for quite a long time, pondering. Even though Chiyo had been often declaring her indifference to the village's future, she had still lent a hand when the circumstances called for it. She had agreed to proceed with unsealing Shukaku, and would certainly transfer the demon back into its kettle if not for the interruption.

That was where Baki's frown deepened.

He still didn't know who the attackers were. Donned in the black coats with the pattern of red clouds, they had fought well enough to effortlessly slay too many of Baki's best people. Nothing could be more shocking though than discovering that Akasuna no Sasori was one of them but it definitely explained a lot. In the end, even Chiyo was no match for her grandson.

Squeezing the bridge of his nose, Baki exhaled deeply. He had sent the pursuits after the nukenins, although he doubted they would gather any intel. The attackers had left the village flying, after all. Once they found out that the jinchūriki was gone, they'd been scooped by the white bird looking as if made of clay - and then it had occurred to Baki that the blond one could be Iwagakure ninja once - and they had just run away.

Did they take Gaara with them? Did Sasori have more sleeping agents in the village apart from Yūra? There were so many questions regarding an attack and Gaara's disappearance, that it was giving Baki a headache a few times in a day.

Chiyo's brother, Ebizō-jisama, suggested to deal with those two riddles separately until it would be confirmed that Sasori and his companion had actually captured the jinchūriki. The elder argued that jinchūriki could even escape by himself. Gaara had been since long known as a tough opponent, after all.

Baki remained unconvinced, though. How come Gaara would recover from the drug's effects and the shock of unsealing? Not only recover but actually run away from the village unnoticed. Yes, Gaara was tough, but still human. He had limits just like everyone else. That was why they could capture him in the end. That was why someone captured him while the village was under attack, and Baki needed to know who it was. It might have been that the attack was just a diversion. Sasori and the other nukenin might have been the ones to tie Suna ninjas down while someone else - and obviously not Yūra - was meant to carry Gaara away. That mysterious person had obviously attacked Suname, and went into the village in his guise, leaving the paralyzed chūnin in the rock crevice. Judging from nukenins' ruthless assaults, they wouldn't left Suname alive if they would capture him. That meant someone else had done it, someone who had been using a poisoned senbon that was made in Sunagakure. Naturally, Baki suspected Kankurō but the puppeteer had been on the mission at that time. Plus, Sasori was also a puppeteer from Suna. He could have been a person who gave a senbon to an infiltrator—

An ANBU appeared near, keeping the distance until the Kazekage would call him. Baki cast a sidelong glance at his subordinate, and nodded. The masked ninja stepped up closer, his voice hushed as he uttered. "Kazekage-sama, we have found the jinchūriki's location."

Baki stiffened, holding his breath.

"The pursuers?" he inquired briefly.

"No," the ANBU replied. "Isago and others returned from the capital city. The news they brought..." He trailed off momentarily before he cleared his throat. "Actually, it turned out that the jinchūriki is being daimyō's personal bodyguard at the moment."

 **The end of the chapter** **3** **5** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:** **The** **list**

Isago is a canon character. He's Baki's right hand in the manga.

 

 


	35. The list

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **3** **6** **.** **The list** **~**

Gaara was about to leave the hut. He decided he couldn't stay in it any longer because the longer he stayed the more chances increased that the pursuers would come. There would be a fight, and in his current state he would most likely have a hard time to repel Shukaku if the demon would scent blood. For that, he needed to get away fast.

Only, he didn't have any idea about where to go.

Since the last attempt on capturing him succeeded, it was obvious he couldn't stay anywhere near Suna. They would find him sooner or later, and an old hag would try again to unseal what she had once sealed.

 _Talk about changing one's mind_ , Gaara thought sarcastically.

He gathered rations, and packed them into the pouch. His dear siblings made sure he would be supplied with necessary equipment before he would leave the country. Not that he was planning to leave Kaze no Kuni in the nearest future. He had a work to do first.

In his mind, the list had been made a long time ago. All entries on the list were the names of people who were to blame for his agonizing solitude and years of insomnia. The very first person on the list, that was Gaara's father, was already dead. Not from Gaara's hands, unfortunately, but dead nonetheless. Gaara's siblings were on the list, too. Of course, they didn't help their father in any way but they certainly added to Gaara's loneliness. However, they could wait because there was another person on the list, and Gaara's ordeals were definitely his fault. Kaze no Kuni no daimyō, who had reduced funding of Suna, outsourcing many missions to Konoha at the same time, was a main character in this play. Because of his actions, Gaara's father decided that creating more powerful ninjas was essential in order to increase the military potential and therefore reduce the threat of  _extinction._   _Shukaku_  had been sealed into Gaara after that, and Gaara's fate had been sealed as well; all of it was daimyō's fault.

Gaara scanned the hut's interior, careful not to leave any signs that the place had been just occupied. Having removed the blanket and the jug, he covered the floor with a thin layer of sand dust. The hut looked as if being abandoned for quite a long time. Satisfied with the result, Gaara went out, leaving the door set ajar.  _It's time to scratch out another name from the list, he thought_ , heading westwards.

The jinchūriki reached the capital city of Kaze no Kuni in a few days. It was a busy place, and Gaara didn't have a particular trouble to hide. After spending several days on spying on the daimyō, he gathered enough intel to proceed with his plan. In the evening, he watched the feast, followed by a little orgy. The ruler of Kaze no Kuni and a few selected officials indulged themselves in a way that made Gaara's lips curl in distaste and contempt. After a few hours the officials were scooped by their escorts, and dragged along towards their mansions. The hour was late, and daimyō's guards were slightly distracted. A perfect opportunity for an assassin.

Standing on a tree branch, Gaara froze while still observing the activity inside the mansion with his Daisan no Me. A few silhouettes in black appeared inside, noiselessly killing the guards. Their movements were precise and fast, their synchronization excellent, their purposefulness obvious. Gaara admired them for a heartbeat before he went inside to carry on his own mission. He entered daimyō's bedroom after all guards had been slaughtered, surprising assassins with his sudden appearance. They had left their own guards standing in the corridors and rooms, ready to prevent any possible interruptions. Gaara silenced them all, and only a few were left who had been obviously ordered to send the daimyō to afterlife.

The ruler of the country didn't look impressive nor aristocratic as he crawled on the floor, begging for mercy. He snapped his terrified, shocked eyes at Gaara, at first looking hopeful, then confused. The assassins standing nearest Gaara attacked him within a blink of an eye, and were finished off instantly. Their companions hesitated, obviously not knowing if to get rid of Gaara first or to kill daimyō even at the cost of their own lives. Gaara, for that matter, didn't hesitate, as he buried them under his sand.

Turning towards the pale-faced, wide-eyed man, who made his life hard beyond imagination, Gaara heard horrified cries and calls from below. Someone had obviously realized there were intruders inside the mansion, and the guards and servants had been alarmed. Not that it mattered, though. A few seconds were enough to assassinate the daimyō, withdraw any evidence, and escape.

"You are... the jinchūriki from Suna..." daimyō rasped, still on his knees, as he glanced at what was left of the assassins.

Gaara was surprised a little, only to realize that it was the ruler of the country, after all. He was certainly kept informed of everything that concerned Sunagakure, and he surely knew who and what Gaara was.

"You protected me," the man continued, supporting himself against the column bed, which was covered with rich bedsheets. "What do you want in exchange?" Since he got no response from Gaara, he began to specify. "Money? Position? Power? Or maybe—" he broke off, rubbing his chin with his index finger. "I would hire you as my personal bodyguard," he finally said, watching Gaara carefully. "What say you?"

Gaara certainly didn't expect that. Obviously, daimyō calculated quickly that Gaara alone would be more effective let alone less expensive than a group of guards. On the other hand, wasn't Gaara widely known as an unpredictable and highly dangerous toy to play with carelessly?

"What say you?" daimyō repeated, frowning.

Gaara ignored him as he pondered over an offer. Actually, he didn't have anything better to do, not even mentioning it would be quite interesting to play this game right. And, what was even more important, the council of Sunagakure would have to withdraw a death warrant on their infamous demon host.

Gaara grinned to himself, causing daimyō to move back.  _Let's see how Suna will swallow this pill!_

"I accept," the redhead replied at last, and daimyō made a face as if he almost regretted the decision.

"We have a deal then," the man said, his voice and pose imperious once the threat had been completely eradicated. "And now, before you get rid of those dead bodies, tell me how much do you charge."

 **The end of the chapter** **3** **6** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:** **Relief is only temporary**

 


	36. Relief is only temporary

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **3** **7** _ **.** _ **Relief is only temporary** **~**

The room was very small and sparsely furnished. Actually, there were only three single-sized futons on an uncovered floor, and a low small table in the corner. Not that Matsuri would expect more from a room for servants and kitchen helpers. At first, it had seemed to her she would feel comfortable there. The owner of the guest house was a kind man, and other girls were nice. However, after a few months she had fully realized she could never belong there. She was a changed person, different from who she had been before Jōseki ordered to kidnap her, and feed her to the monster.

Since then, she had learned not to trust, not to depend on anyone else, not to ask for mercy. She was aware that it was exactly what people called loneliness but she was stuck in it too deep to find any way out. She wasn't even sure if she actually wanted out, after all she had been through.

Miraculously, she had managed to escape Kaze no Kuni unscathed. Acting upon Kankurō's advice, she had headed towards Hi no Kuni, wandering across its plain green meadows and fields, and humid forests whispering with unfamiliar noises. It had felt almost unreal; she was free at last. She had had literally nothing with her except a few clothes and a water canteen, and she had got rid of them as soon as she got new ones. She only kept a kunai. Wrapped in a piece of a thick fabric, it was bound to her calf under her trousers but she was constantly aware that it was wrong to carry the blade without a proper sheath. She could stab herself accidentally.

She had been hiking across the land for several days, spending the nights in the small villages where people were kinder and prone to help a lonely girl. She couldn't get any job there but someone had suggested she could try her luck in Shikuba, a city famous for its gambling center. Matsuri had decided then that she wouldn't go to Kawa no Kuni yet. She had wanted to try that Shikuba city first. Not that she was much into gambling but there would be most likely many shops, guest houses, hotels, and locals in the city. In other words, a shady place where people wouldn't mind employing a 13-year-old.

Thankfully, everything went out as planned. The second guest house she had gone into offered her a job, and a room to share with other girls working there. It was all good and well but eventually an impatience sprouted inside Matsuri. Definitely, she didn't want to spend her entire life helping in the kitchen. She managed to save some money but what was she supposed to do with it? If she lived in a ninja village, she might have been able to find a teacher. But first she needed to settle in the hidden village. Unfortunately, the hidden villages were exactly what the names implied. If you were not an experienced traveler or a spy, you wouldn't find a hidden village even if it would be under your very nose. That meant Matsuri needed to get more information.

From what she had gathered, there were two kunoichis in Shikuba. Matsuri watched them but she decided that it wouldn't be to her benefit to choose any of them as a teacher. The older kunoichi, who was being called Tsunade-sama by her companion, was addicted to gambling. People gossiped that she had been a great kunoichi once but what Matsuri could actually see was a woman indulging herself too much with drinking, and then losing her all money - if she had money at all - in gambling houses. On the other hand, her friend and assistant, Shizune, was addicted to nurturing the drunkard, and taking care of her pet, a little pig Tonton. True that their constant arguments were fun to watch but Matsuri wouldn't be able to take any of them seriously.

That was why she was still searching.

 **The end of the chapter** **3** **7** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:** **Innocent until proven guilty**

 


	37. Innocent until proven guilty

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **38** _ **.** _ **Innocent until proven guilty** **~**

It was going to be a long conversation. And a difficult one. Even though Baki knew he couldn't have made another decision, the sense of guilt still nagged at him as he watched Temari and Kankurō walking into his office. The siblings were calm and collected as usual; just as if they had nothing to do with the recent events. Their personal thoughts and feelings were put away for a time being, until they would leave the room.

It was obvious they didn't trust Baki anymore.  _And no wonder_ , Baki thought. Unfortunately, he didn't deal with the crisis better than his predecessor. He betrayed his former pupils, and lost their respect. Of course they were still loyal to the village but who could know what was bubbling under the calm surface?

"Temari. Kankurō."

"Kazekage-sama."

Two pairs of eyes observed Baki warily as he told the siblings to sit down. However, they didn't show any sign of discomfort nor anxiety.

"I need to ask you a few questions," the Kazekage said. "The most important thing is the recent attack on the village, and Gaara's disappearance." He leaned forward a little, scrutinizing the siblings' faces. "Did you help Gaara escape?" he pressed, rather unsurprised when both young ninjas remained completely calm and unshaken.

"I must admit our family ties are strong. We are loyal to our family but that loyalty has its limits," Temari explained smoothly. "Besides, even if we would have wanted to help Gaara escape, we were on the mission during the attack," she added, shrugging almost imperceptibly.

"Indeed," Baki murmured, crossing his arms over his chest, and glancing at Temari from under his brow. He was perfectly aware that the siblings were able to complete the task ahead of time if they would have tried their hardest. Thankfully or not, there was no way to prove his supposition correct. "I gather that you don't want to help Gaara then," he ventured.

"But we _do_  want to help Gaara," Kankurō stressed. "If he only wouldn't be beyond anyone's help..." the puppeteer trailed off.

Suddenly Baki decided to speak honestly.

"I don't believe you," he admitted. "I think you would have tried to save your brother's life. The point is: I have no proof against you, and I won't try to obtain it. That's my satisfaction."

The siblings' blank expressions were quite telltale. However, Baki decided to abandon the topic. He was certain Temari and Kankurō knew what he meant. They had been his students once, after all.

"Enough about Gaara. Let's talk about Matsuri," the Kazekage continued. "What do you know about her?"

A small frown creased Temari's forehead.

"You had offered to take her in. Had you done it without a basic knowledge on her?" Baki prompted.

Kankurō cleared his throat. "She had been kidnapped without any sensible reason. Listening to her story, we have realized what had actually happened to her. Why not to try to make up for it? We have already lost our brother but we might have had a sister instead," he said, his tone level. However, Baki could read between words. What Kankurō was actually trying to say was that he didn't trust his former teacher at all. Most likely the siblings thought that Baki was the one behind the murders Gaara had committed during the 'mission' they had been given by Jōseki.

"Without any sensible reason, yes," Baki said, weighing his words. "I suppose Matsuri must have been shocked and scared."

"She was," Temari confirmed. "Everyone would have been if they were in her place."

Baki leaned backwards in his chair, his hands resting on armrests. Tapping his fingers against the wooden surface, he eyed the siblings for a few minutes. They were deceptively relaxed, seemingly speaking their mind. However, what interested Baki the most was what they kept to themselves. For example, they still didn't say anything about Matsuri.

"Such a frail, incapable girl," Baki said sympathetically. "Doesn't it strike you how much she managed to achieve during the last several weeks?" Neither Temari nor Kankurō spoke, and Baki nodded with his fingers steepled. "She had escaped from the village, and the pursuing squad had been found slaughtered in the desert. No one survived. The girl had gone to Gaara's hideout then. After he had been captured, other two ninjas had been found missing. Gaara hadn't killed them. They were still alive after he'd been drugged."

Kankurō was the first to speak after the long pause. "Matsuri said she had been kicked out from the Academy," he remarked. "The records—"

"The records confirm that she had a serious phobia, and therefore hadn't been able to continue her training," Baki interjected. "Since then she had lived alone until she had been kidnapped. Her parents had been murdered by nukenins several years ago. She has no family nor friends." Baki's expression grew even more serious. "At least this is what I am supposed to believe," he emphasized.

Flabbergasted, the siblings stared at the Kazekage. None of the two spoke as they waited for an explanation.

"I'm asking again," Baki said. "Do you know anything about Matsuri that would shed some more light on recent events?"

"No, Kazekage-sama," Temari replied with a strangled voice. "We were entirely convinced about her innocence."

Baki made a mental note that she used past tense, which meant that he was close to win the siblings over.

"Then how would you explain those mysterious incidents?" he inquired.

Kankurō cleared his throat. "I can't believe those deaths are Matsuri's fault," he said. "There must be another explanation. Maybe someone else—"

The Kazekage narrowed his eyes, and scrutinized his former students for a good few minutes.

"Many elders think - and I agree with them - that the girl is actually a spy," he revealed at last. "That's the only possible explanation."

Temari and Kankurō exchanged knowing glances. Baki could almost read their thoughts. They suddenly realized that they were suspected of collaborating with the enemy, intentionally or not. However, there was still no proof that Matsuri  _was_  a spy.

Innocent until proven guilty.

"All I need to be done is capturing her at last," the Kazekage announced. "Therefore you are being assigned to the mission of finding her, and bringing her back to the village."

Temari frowned, and Baki knew why. They had never been a part of a pursuing squad before. Usually ANBU ninjas were the ones who would be sent after the alleged spy.

"If you can track her, and force her to come back, you will prove yourselves innocent, too," Baki added. "There are some who would gladly see you being banished from the village. We must not let them prevail."

Finally he could use that crucial word.  _We._  Baki hoped Temari and Kankurō would fall into that trap. He couldn't afford losing them, especially since Gaara was gone. He, as the Kazekage, had to make them see themselves as a part of the village again.

The siblings were still sitting motionless, their breathing shallow as they considered their options. Baki thought it would be a good time to give more details. "We suspect that the girl could be Yūra's underling," he said. "She had rather effectively worked on drawing Gaara away from the village. However, we still don't know if there's any connection between Yūra and the daimyō."

Temari and Kankurō were still looking as if they had quite a hard time to embrace all that had been said. When Baki mentioned daimyō, their expressions grew even more confused.

"I suppose nobody told you yet," the Kazekage said with a nod. "Gaara is being daimyō's personal bodyguard at the moment."

Kankurō snorted with an uncontrollable laughter, and Temari glared at him. Baki sighed, standing up. Pacing to and fro, he slanted a glance at his subordinates.

"Yeah, I know," he admitted. "No one thought that daimyō was being suicidal. However, the question remains. Is annihilation of Suna daimyō's goal?"

Temari furrowed, lost in thought.

"Isn't Gaara simply running away?" she mused without answering Baki's question. "He knows what... what the village wants. He might be insane but he still wants to live."

"It might be," Baki agreed. "But it still doesn't explain other events."

The siblings linked their gazes.

"Since we can't speak with Gaara, we have to catch Matsuri," Baki said, watching them. "I have already seen to sending the case file to your house."

Kankurō was surprised. "Why can't we speak with Gaara?"

"Because the daimyō wishes otherwise," the Kazekage replied. "He's fully aware that we wanted to kill his precious bodyguard. We're not allowed to speak to Gaara nor approach him in any way."

Baki thought he might have been mistaken but didn't their chests slightly heave with a sigh of relief?

"I am the only person to be informed on any progress of your mission," he remarked. "Now, you may go."

 **The end of the chapter** **38** **.**

 **The next c** **hapter:**   **The discussion**


	38. The discussion

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **39** _ **.** _ **The discussion** **~**

Kaze no Kuni no daimyō has never been a temperamental person. However, his advisors, henchmen, and guards were gradually getting on his nerves. He had supposed earlier they would most likely disapprove appointing infamous jinchūriki of Shukaku to the position of daimyō's personal bodyguard. Hell, the daimyō himself had initially thought that he must have been out of his right mind at the time when he decided to hire Sabaku no Gaara. However it turned out that the boy was the best bodyguard the daimyō had ever had by his side. Despite of that - or because of that, perhaps - too many people insisted Gaara should be released from the position immediately.

The more they insisted, the more daimyō resisted.  _The game might have been funny if they were less serious about it_ _,_ daimyō thought, turning his attention to the guards commander who was ranting and raving about the red-headed jinchūriki at the moment.

"We all know that his past is stained with blood," Kanryū said. "He's widely known for killing people on whim. Even his own father sentenced him to death. He's extremely dangerous—"

The daimyō raised his hand, and the man ceased speaking at once. Everyone looked at the ruler who steepled his fingers, leaning forward. "How many people has he killed since he became my bodyguard?"

Kanryū cleared his throat. "Four, I think," he said reluctantly.

"Which obviously means the rumors concerning him were untrue," the daimyō said.

"But my lord—"

"Send people out to Sunagakure if you want," daimyō growled, irate. "Demand the statistics."

Kanryū nodded obediently. "I will, my lord."

 _I'm sure you will_ _,_ daimyō thought sarcastically. Kanryū's objections were based on prejudices rather than proofs. Certainly he hoped he would gather some incriminating evidence against Gaara in the hidden village. Being paranoid surely was a part of Kanryū's work but daimyō couldn't help but wondering what the man really wanted to achieve. Kanryū had suggested a few candidates who could replace the jinchūriki but daimyō refused all suggestions.

The ruler smiled to himself. Gradually, he began to realize what was the point. Majority of the people couldn't accept Gaara because he was completely neutral. He was an outsider, not involved in politics. The boy simply wasn't interested in playing those games, and daimyō knew why.

Most often, people were getting involved in politics because they sought power. The boy didn't have to do that because he already held an incredible power. Actually, he  _was_  power.

Another reason of involving in politics was money. Everyone around daimyō, from the simplest servant to the most sophisticated advisor, was after money. They were continuously wheedling and fawning in hope to get more.  _Always ready for more_ , daimyō thought, chuckling inwardly.

Again, that rule didn't apply to the boy. He earned a lot of money in daimyō's service, and he spent so little. If someone would even want to bribe him, they had basically nothing to offer. That was another reason of daimyō's resolution to keep the boy for as long as he could.

"What happens if the demon comes out?" one of the advisors asked.

The daimyō nodded reassuringly. It had either been his serious concern once, and he had asked Gaara about it. The boy had seemed to be reluctant but he had finally admitted that he couldn't let the demon take over anymore because it would erase his existence. It was a valuable little bit of information, which the daimyō thought could be used later.

"The demon won't come out," he assured.

"But how can we be sure that the boy truly mastered control over the beast?"

The daimyō chose his words carefully. "And why do you think Yondaime Kazekage ceased assassination attempts? Because the boy learned to use the demon's power properly," he explained.

The advisor opened his mouth to utter but Kanryū beat him to it. "It's another thing that worries me," he said. "That he's a  _boy_. He's 13. He may be too young to understand m—" He was interrupted by daimyō's burst of laughter.

"Kanryū-san, your arguments become more and more pointless," the daimyō stuttered, still chuckling. "The boy is  _a ninja_. They are bred for fighting, not to become sophisticated statesmen. 13 is a perfect age. The older ninja gets, the more often they tend to question orders they are given." Before anyone could reply, the daimyō continued. "Besides, is there anyone who could replace him? Where would you find a person who can protect me even from a distance? His shield of sand is perfect. He can raise it immediately, and keep it while fighting, and you want me to release him—?" He trailed off, watching everyone with his eyebrow raised.

Of course, they didn't say anything because further arguing would only confirm the unspoken suspicion. The daimyō nodded, satisfied, and rubbed his hands. "If that's all, I will summon my bodyguard now."

Kanryū glared as the redhead entered the room.

"Gentlemen, the dinner awaits," the daimyō said, beckoning them. "And later we will have some fun."

 **The end of the chapter** **39** **.**

**The next c** **hapter:** **The newcomer**

Kanry ū is an OC . He's angry that the daimyō appointed Gaara to the bodyguard position without asking him for consent first. He's stubborn and dour. ( Btw Takeda Kanry ū is a Rurouni Kenshin character, an opium dealer who cares only for money xD ).


	39. The newcomer

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **40\. The newcomer~**

Gaara waited patiently outside of the room just as he had been told. Of course he was aware they must have been talking of him. Otherwise the daimyō wouldn't tell him to stand outside. Gaara was quite certain that Kanryū was trying again to convince the daimyō that the red-headed jinchūriki was rather a poor choice for the bodyguard. Well, let him try. Gaara realized already that the daimyō wasn't going to dismiss him no matter what. After all, Gaara knew very well how to be a perfect bodyguard. This game was much more interesting than he expected. Day by day, he was looking in the daimyō's eyes, finding out that the amount of trust he had earned with protecting his master from assassins was steadily increasing. Other people were not so blind, and they refused to believe that the infamous jinchūriki would suddenly change into a good boy. True that Gaara wasn't killing as often as before. The number of his random victims had considerably lessened but it didn't mean that the slayer inside him was finally satisfied. Sometimes its voice had to be heard, and Gaara indulged in the madness stealthily so no one could ever link unexplained disappearances to him. However it seemed that killing somehow lost its meaning. It couldn't make up for what the world had done to him. Gradually, the jinchūriki realized that watching others suffer appeased his inner sadist better.

It started when he decided to spare the girl. His greed for each glimpse of endless loneliness in her black eyes constantly grew, and catching it made him feel much better than he would feel if he only killed her, and watched a short agony. She tried to hide the suffering from him but there was no way she could hide such enormous pain. Her each breath smelled like tears she had never shed, and he enjoyed it deeply. Her life was broken but she lived on, always in pain, believing that she could get her revenge someday. It was the agony that never ended, and he knew now it was exactly that kind of agony he wanted to instill in others.

Gaara began to appreciate the affection his siblings had for him. If they cared for him, watching what he had become must have broken their hearts. Thinking of it, the warmth swelled inside him. It felt like discovering a new, fascinating land where he had never been before but he wanted to investigate it thoroughly because of the potential hidden there.

Maybe he couldn't escape from hell but what if he could drag others into it?

The realization would have never hit him if he had stayed in Suna. At first the redhead hated the village even more for throwing him away like a tool. A tool they had honed for so long to serve a single purpose of destruction. And then they decided that it wasn't necessary anymore. Good for him, actually. If not for his father's failure, he would still be a prisoner to him and old fools in the council. He still wouldn't know how it felt to plot and play his own games.

Gaara saw that the time was due. Having stopped pondering, he knocked at the door and went in, realizing immediately that they had been talking of him indeed. He could tell it from daimyō's smug expression and Kanryū's glare. Striding towards daimyō, the redhead glared back at the guards commander, ignoring others. Coming to a halt next to his master, Gaara glanced down at him, before he scanned the room briefly. Actually, there were no assassination attempts any longer, but it never hurt to make an impression that he was being extra cautious.

The daimyō didn't bother to look at his bodyguard. He had explained to Gaara earlier what they were going to do during this evening. First the discussion with the most trusted men, then the dinner, and the male fun in daimyō's most favorite whorehouse. Naturally, daimyō never used the word. He was calling it a pleasure house but Gaara didn't see a reason to follow his example.

The dinner was loud as usual as the officials relaxed, devouring food and drinking some fine spirits. Gaara stood behind daimyō's chair with his arms crossed, sporting glances at the pigs lounging at the table. The ruler had been arguing with him over his attitude once but Gaara never gave up to his demands. The redhead was not going to dine with them, simple as that. Moreover, he was not going to eat whatever daimyō's cook would make.

One poisoning attempt, even if it had been made several years ago, was a valuable lesson that Gaara memorized accurately.

The daimyō had reluctantly accepted an explanation, and he never mentioned it again.

After the dinner the group headed for the whorehouse, every official escorted by his own guards. It would look odd if the daimyō would be escorted by Gaara only so there were other guards accompanying him as well but they all knew, much to their annoyance, that they were actually unnecessary. The daimyō held Gaara's skills in highest esteem, and for good reason.

Once they entered the house, the women began to gather, taking on their usual fawning grins. Gaara glanced at other men, at their hungry expressions, wondering how come they could find those empty smiles attractive.

Well, to each their own.

Of course Gaara couldn't deny he learned so much in this place. Most of all, he had learned to read even deeper into human hearts since the house was nothing more than the house of deceivers. Fake smiles, fake affection. Actually, he had seen enough to be sure that he could even play a charmer if he ever wanted. Chuckling inwardly, he dismissed the thought.  _Sabaku no Gaara, the charmer._

Well, not yet, although he knew now that seduction could be used as a weapon, too.

Following the group, Gaara walked into the great hall where all women were waiting. Instantly, everyone's attention was caught by three girls standing in the front. Newcomers wearing white laces were the most welcome in this business however Gaara would have never expected to see this particular girl in such a place. The housemother called her Natsuko but he was certain her name was different. Was it Natsume? Masako? He couldn't remember.

Not that it actually mattered.

The girl's black eyes were downcast, her lips trembling slightly. She looked much younger than others even if wearing a strong make-up. Gaara watched her indifferently, wondering about possible reasons, bringing her to work as a prostitute. She seemed to be so out of place but again he could have been seriously mistaken. There was more to her than met the eye. He knew it firsthand.

All men waited until the daimyō would choose a woman for himself. The daimyō was comfortably seated on a sofa, and Kanryū stood behind his back, fidgeting restlessly. Gaara slanted a glance at him, and noticed that the guards commander was continuously staring at the new girl, obviously hardly able to contain his impatience. Gaara frowned as he remembered that Kanryū was in fact partial to girls. Naturally, Kanryū preferred the term 'young women', but everybody knew what he actually meant.

Suddenly, the redhead could see the plan unfolding in his head. Stepping forward, he stood next to the daimyō, and gazed down at him. The daimyō glanced back, slightly irritated, and Gaara leaned towards him a little.

"I want this one," he declared in a distinctive murmur, pointing at the girl with the tilt of his head.

The daimyō blinked, surprised, as other men, and also women, gasped in shock. Gaara could hear Kanryū's growl from behind but he kept his expression emotionless, looking into his master's eyes.

At first, daimyō only scowled. He didn't utter a word though, as if giving Gaara time to realize that his words had been extremely offensive. Gaara, however, didn't particularly mind. He had never asked of anything before, and he knew that daimyō wouldn't have a reason to deny him what he wanted.

The daimyō was aware of it either. He pursed his lips, and pulled himself to a standing position. Slowly, he walked towards the girl, and put his index finger under her chin, forcing her to raise her head and face him. "This one?" he inquired with a derisive smirk, raising his eyebrow. The girl stared at him with her eyes wide. She looked stunned, and Gaara wondered if she hadn't been drugged before she joined the party.  _Time to taste your own medicine_ , Gaara thought sarcastically, remembering how she had poisoned him.

Gaara was still careful not to look at Kanryū who was most certainly closer than ever to yelling at his face. With a nod, Gaara took a step forward. The daimyō gazed at him meaningfully, and Gaara knew what it meant.  _We'll talk about it later._

The redhead was utterly satisfied. He knew that Kanryū had surely seen daimyō's look, and interpreted it properly. The guards commander must have realized that Gaara could get anything from daimyō because he never asked of anything. It was the power he held, and he knew that Kanryū didn't like it.

In the meantime, the girl seemed to shake the stupor off as she blinked, looking around. Seeing Gaara, her jaw dropped, and the panic flickered in her eyes. The daimyō released her chin, and walked back towards the chair, beckoning Gaara. "I approve," the ruler stated in a level voice. Gaara glared around as if challenging anyone who would dare to protest but they were silent. The housemother prodded the girl, and the brunette looked at the older woman, her expression frightened and obviously uncomprehending.

"Natsuko," the housemother hissed quietly, barely opening her mouth. "Take Gaara-sama to your room."

The girl staggered back, shaking her head.

"H-him?" she stuttered, flicking a glance at Gaara, and the housemother nodded, staring at the girl menacingly.

"Shy ones are the cutest," the daimyō murmured behind Gaara's back. Everyone else laughed at the comment but Kanryū was dangerously silent. Gaara didn't laugh either, his face expressionless as he imagined the hatred burning inside guards commander. The redhead wanted to look back at him but he decided he would better put on an act, and look completely oblivious.

He strode towards the girl quite slowly, watching her as she shook her head frantically.

"No," she whispered, and the housemother gasped, outraged. "No!" the girl continued, screaming this time, and that earned her everyone's attention. "Not him! Anyone but not HIM!"

**The end of the chapter 40.**

**The next chapter:** **Absolutely incomprehensible**


	40. Absolutely incomprehensible

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **41\. Absolutely incomprehensible~**

Seeing those hateful, ruthless eyes again, Matsuri felt as if woken up from a nightmare. Since she had been kidnapped by human traffickers, something seemed to snap within her, stripping her of all determination and fighting spirit. The traffickers knew how to break people, and make them absolutely obedient. Matsuri had compared them to the redheaded monster and, oddly enough, she found him easier to deal with. Not that he was a nice person, of course not. But he was still true to himself even if he reveled in cruelty and slaughter. Unlike him, the traffickers were only after money. They would sell each other within a blink if they would have been offered enough price. Hell, they would most likely sell every remnant of their soul if they could get enough for it.

Of course there was no human trafficking in great shinobi countries, at least officially. Every Kage and daimyō was supposed to abide by such a law. Unfortunately, Matsuri learned firsthand that the rulers weren't always doing what they were supposed to do. Standing in front of a man who obviously was Kaze no Kuni no daimyō, she felt utterly helpless. Before she could even fully embrace what happened, she was facing the monster again, realizing that her life had never been so fucked up before.

Walking upstairs, followed by him, she wondered if she was able to anger him strongly enough to make him kill her. She didn't dare to glance back at him but she knew he was there even if she couldn't hear the sound of his footsteps. Her heart thumped in her chest as she dismissed any possible way to get out of there, one by one.

She couldn't run away; She couldn't ask him for mercy; She couldn't defeat him. Obviously death was her only option.

The stupor overtook her again when she remembered her room, and the high vase made of a fine, thin glass, placed in the corner. Picturing it in her imagination, Matsuri opened the door and ran for the vase, knocking it down so it shattered against the floor. Kneeling down on the sharp slivers, she grabbed the long, narrow piece of glass. The blood trickled down her fingers from shallow cuts, and suddenly something hard hit her left temple, making the world swirl around her, shutting her consciousness down.

When she woke up, her hand and knees were tingling and hurting but what was the worst was the migraine. The left side of her head ached so badly that she felt nauseous. Her stomach has been empty for too long, and she fought the sickness because throwing up would only burn her throat. Slowly, she managed to open her eyes, blinking when the light dazzled her. After her eyes had finally adjusted to the brightness, she realized that she was still lying where she had fainted before. Moaning, she rolled over and struggled to support herself on all fours, barely noticing that the pieces of the shattered glass that should have been scattered around her were somehow gone.

When she could finally look and think past the veil of pain, she sat on her heels and scanned the room. Unfortunately, the monster hadn't been gone yet. He stood near the door, leaning against the wall and ignoring her completely. His eyes were closed, and he was pressing his fingers against his right eye, heavily focusing on whatever he was doing.

Matsuri sought for the smallest shard of glass but there was none. She didn't even know what she would do if she had one. She had tried to stab herself before but she was interrupted, most likely by him. However he hadn't done anything improper to her since he entered the room. He was just standing there, ignoring her. What did he want? Maybe he would help her to get out of the trouble...

Matsuri shook her head. She truly should know better. Nothing good ever came from him, simple as that. It would be stupid to presume otherwise.

Suddenly the passive redhead flickered his left eye open, glancing at her. "Don't do that again," he warned. "You'll be sorry if you ruin it."

 _What?_  she wanted to ask, confused.

"I must go," he said, lowering his hand, and turning towards the door. "Be good and maybe I'll help you out of here."

Matsuri stared at his back with her chin dropped as he strode away, and quietly shut the door. This was so absolutely incomprehensible that she had to pinch herself to make certain that she wasn't sleeping.

She must have just misheard.

**The end of the chapter 41.**

**The next chapter:** **Explanations**

 


	41. Explanations

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter**   **42\. Explanations~**

Gaara went downstairs, and into the room where the daimyō was waiting. The woman the daimyō had had fun with was gone, and the ruler was settled in a comfortable armchair, his pose relaxed. He crooked his finger, and Gaara walked closer in silence. The daimyō tapped his fingers against the armrest and snarled quietly, scowling. Gaara watched his master calmly, wordlessly. He knew the man was trying to get him to speak first but Gaara was always the winner in such games. He was yet to meet the person who would endure his stare for longer than a few minutes.

 _They are afraid of looking into someone else's eyes for too long because it exposes their souls,_  Gaara thought to himself.  _And they feel compelled to cover it with a small talk._

"Explain yourself," the daimyō ordered angrily as if reading his bodyguard's mind.

"I'm sorry, my lord," Gaara spoke innocently. "But I couldn't—"

"—help yourself?" the daimyō interrupted with a snort. "Don't play these games with me, boy. You have never been interested in women before. How come you're suddenly interested in a girl who seems to know you? Moreover she declared her willingness to go upstairs with anyone else but not you—"

Gaara shrugged. "Many people recognize me," he said indifferently. "I'm rather known for my... impulsiveness."

The daimyō propped his chin on a hand.

"So you say that she was afraid of your... impulsiveness, as you put it?"

"Perhaps," Gaara said in a controlled tone.

"And you insist that you've never seen her before?"

Gaara wondered where this was going. At first, he had thought he would be scolded for stealing bits from daimyō's plate. Now it seemed that the daimyō was attempting to get some personal information on him, surely to use it later when needed. Maybe the daimyō decided he could blackmail Gaara with the girl's life or something.

_Let him think he has seen my cards._

"I admit I vaguely remember her," Gaara said. "Most likely she comes from Sunagakure."

"They say she comes from Shikuba. It's a city in Hi no Kuni."

"Maybe she moved."

The daimyō pondered for several minutes, and shook his head.

"She moved, and now you meet her in a pleasure house? Quite a coincidence."

"It's a small world, isn't it?" Gaara replied flatly.

"Maybe it is but I warn you I will be monitoring this," the daimyō threatened. "There's something going on, and you can't convince me otherwise. She was wearing white laces, haven't you noticed?"

"I have."

"And?"

Gaara bowed. "Forgive me, my lord, but the girl attracted me somehow. I couldn't resist."

The daimyō showed him out with the wave of his hand. "Nonsense," he said scornfully when Gaara turned around and walked towards the door. "I got to know you, boy. You're cold as ice, and now you're saying you couldn't resist a girl. You underestimate me if you think that I am going to buy this story."

Gaara decided not to comment on this. The daimyō was right, of course, but he ought not to know Gaara's reasons until it would be too late.

"My lord," the redhead spoke before he exited the room. "I would like to have the girl only for myself. By your permission, of course."

"I don't give you permission," the daimyō answered coldly. "You will share."

"Yes, my lord. Can I go back to her, then?" Gaara said in a low hiss without looking back. "I will watch you with my technique. Plus I will protect you with my clone." Along with his words, the thick coil of sand left the gourd. It settled down onto the floor, the formless heap at first, then it began to shape until it created a perfect replica.

The daimyō didn't utter for quite a long time. "Go then," he said at last. "Watch me. And I'll be watching you too."

Gaara nodded, and disappeared in a cloud of the sand dust.

**The end of the chapter 42.**

**The next chapter:** **Turning the tide**


	42. Turning the tide

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** **43\. Turning the tide~**

Sunagakure councilmen were experienced, wise ninjas but they still couldn't find any way to solve all problems, and deal with the escalating crisis properly. It seemed that the situation was more critical than ever. After the failed attempt on capturing the bijū that they had once thought to be their indisputable property, the jinchūriki escaped to join daimyō's forces, carrying the demon away from the village. That itself was a terrible loss but the number of casualties of the sudden attack pursued by two nukenins was even more devastating.

"More and more people leave every day," Gōza said sullenly. "Civilians came to the conclusion that we can't protect the village anymore."

"We should not allow them to leave," Jōseki answered immediately. "Nobody should have been allowed to leave after the attack. We need those people."

Baki listened to them, not knowing what to do anymore. He looked back once again at his predecessor, Yondaime Kazekage, but this time he didn't judge the golden dust wielder. Baki knew now he was in no place to judge because he was no better. He was only grateful he didn't have to sacrifice his family only to find out it was all in vain.

Frankly speaking, the Kazekage hadn't had much sleep that night. Thinking about Gaara's father, he wondered and wondered and wondered about the biggest mistake that had been made in general. Baki was certain there must have been another way to do things, and after too many sleepless hours he finally found an answer.

The previous Kazekages, and the council, and Suna ninjas in general, followed the values, which obviously were wrong somehow. The realization was shocking and unwelcome because Baki followed those values too. Maybe it was the desert forcing them, hardening people's hearts. Maybe it was just the people themselves. But still those were values that brought Jōseki to kill innocent villagers. He had good intentions, no doubt about that, however Baki decided intentions couldn't count anymore when the deeds were abominable.

"We won't force anyone to stay. We can't afford sabotages and mutiny that would inevitably follow confinement," Baki said firmly, earning doubtful glances from a few councilmen. He knew what they thought. It was unprecedented. His former teacher, Sandaime Kazekage, would have never made such decision. Yondaime Kazekage had been also following his predecessor's guidelines, ruling the people of Suna with an iron fist.

"Not only civilians are leaving," Jōseki said. "What should we do about deserters?"

 _Do not forget Pakura_ , Baki thought to himself.  _Do not forget Gaara. What if those were unnecessary sacrifices?_

"Let them be," the Kazekage ordered, his voice steady. "No pursuits, no punishments."

"But Kazekage-sama..." Sekka said quietly. "It's unheard of..."

"I would use harsher words to describe it," Ebizō scoffed. "Have you lost your mind, Kazekage?"

Baki sighed because he expected that although he still hoped it could be avoided.

"At the moment I need only the most trusted people," he announced in a level voice. "Anyone who wants to leave, can leave. I want only those who are still loyal to this village, and are willing to participate in rebuilding it."

"This is ridiculous," Ebizō snorted. Baki was sure that other councilmen were most likely thinking the same thing but none of them dared to speak in such manner to their leader yet.

"Disloyalty means that there will be many nukenins swarming other countries," Jōseki remarked. "Kages won't stay silent."

"Those people are not running because they found nukenin's life easier and more alluring," Baki argued. "They are still to be considered Sunagakure ninjas until they would have committed a crime. It may be they will come back as soon as the village regains its high status. We have to hold the door open for them."

"From my point of view it's like giving Sunagakure to other villages on a silver platter," Ebizō said, shaking his head.

"And from my point of view it's like we're about to found a village, starting from scratch," Baki replied. "We have to revise the values inherited from our predecessors, the values we live by, never calling them in question."

The councilmen watched him in silence, only Jōseki gestured towards the statues of the previous Kazekages. "What will remain once we get rid of the values of our respectable ancestors?" he inquired in a grave voice.

"I've never said anything about getting rid of those values," Baki answered calmly with a tone of finality. "I only said that we need to revise them."

**The end of the chapter 43.**

**The next chapter:** **Kill me**

Gōza, Jōseki, and Sekka, are Sunagakure councilmen. They are all canon characters.


	43. Kill me

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** **44\. K** **ill me~**

After the monster had been gone, Matsuri stared at the door for a very long time. Bewildered, she could only replay in her imagination what had just transpired. Slowly, she brushed her fingertips against her left temple. There was a long laceration there, its edges swollen and tender. She could also feel the stickiness of the clotted blood in her hair. Obviously, the monster used a weapon - most likely his sand - effectively preventing her suicidal attempt.

Why would he do that?

Matsuri scrutinized the fancy white lingerie she had been forced to put on before this nightmare started. Save a few streaks of blood on her bra, the lingerie was flawless. The monster hadn't done anything to her, unbelievable as it was.

 _Yet_ , she thought to herself.  _Yet._

Maybe he was only saving her for later.

Matsuri chastised herself inwardly. True that the traffickers kept a close eyes on girls to stop them from killing themselves but after she had been left in the house, she should have taken even the smallest chance. Funny how an instinct for self-preservation could prevail over any logical reasons for erasing one's own existence. However Matsuri didn't have any choice left anymore. If she wouldn't die, she would live the most hideous life of an underage prostitute, simple as that.

And her first would be—

Matsuri flinched, shaking her head briefly. No other answers were needed. She had to do it, and fast, before the monster was back.

She grabbed the red sheet and ripped the thin, long ribbon off, using her hands and teeth. Suddenly the door opened behind her back, and the monster strolled inside. Matsuri's heart went motionless in her chest as her mind switched into entirely different mode. She had a feeling that she abandoned her body and watched the scene from the outside. An icy coldness crept up her legs and arms as if she started dying already. The monster, however, didn't pay much attention to her. He held his hand inside up, fingers crooked, while the thin streak of sand appeared from nowhere, snaking around his arm and into his palm, where it started taking a round shape, until the small ball was finally created. Matsuri had never seen the monster doing this before but she assumed it was one of his unique techniques, based on his sand manipulating skills.

Maybe she could anger him enough to make him kill her. He had almost done it before, in the cave. Now he would finish what he had started.

Matsuri took an unsteady step towards him, pulling the piece of fabric as if testing its strength. Her body felt numb and defiant against her will. The monster still didn't do as much as glimpse at her, proceeding with the technique. He pressed his fingers against his closed eyelid, and soon his palm closed around the sand ball, crushing it. The glittering particles dispersed in the air, and the sand drifted towards the door, slithering through the keyhole.

"What are you going to do with this?" the monster asked, watching the red band in Matsuri's hands, the dark amusement in his voice.

The girl didn't respond to that. It took all she had to force her feet move forward as she went closer to him, her eyes sticking to his. If she averted her gaze only for a second, she would surely wake up from this nightmare, into the reality which was just as horrible.

She couldn't let herself wake up.

His eyes were like water, she decided. The clear water in a sea. Strange notion as it was, her mind indulged into it, drawing her consciousness away from the world. She wondered what would happen if she drowned in these strange eyes. Would she be sinking forever?

The monster waited, the slightest frown creasing his forehead. Another step, and Matsuri was close enough to distinguish his eyelashes against the dark rings around his eyes.

The lashes were a few shades darker than his hair.

"End of the show," he seethed suddenly, his eyes narrowing. Matsuri's feet refused moving as if there were shackles on her ankles.

She had never been so cold in her entire life.

"Kill me," she rasped, jerking her leg to free it from bindings. The monster's upper lip quivered angrily as if he was going to bare his teeth at her. "I'll make you kill me," she whispered, her voice dying in her throat.

And then he laughed.

**The end of the chapter 45.**

**The next chapter:** **A better use**


	44. A better use

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** **45\. A better use~**

Gaara chuckled, quietly at first, then laughed loudly. Humorless laugh it was though, dark and terrifying. The searing pain pierced through his head but it vanished quickly as the jinchūriki threw the girl away with his sand. The smart, little bitch begging for death, promising to make him kill her.

Gaara didn't know if the constant swishing sound was the blood rushing to his head or his sand whooshing around, coiling greedily to take girl's life. Everything was blurry as he struggled to reject the challenge, and calm down the sudden rage boiling inside, deep and raw.

How dared she, this stupid, weak woman, take what was entirely his?  _He_  was the one to decide if they lived or died. It was completely up to him. They were to beg for mercy and shrink in fear. This was what they were living for; to face him and fail.

Definitely, they were  _not_  to ask him to kill them.

The girl hit the bed and landed on the floor with a yelp. Instantly, she tried to get up. Her wobbling legs refused to work so she crawled on all fours in his direction, her breathing heavy like tearless sobs. The sand wrapped around her limbs threateningly but she ignored it completely.

 _I'll make you kill me_ , she had said before.

Ah. Now it made sense.

Gaara crossed his arms over his chest, watching the girl's attempts. He took such pride in being totally independent. Even if being given orders, he obeyed only because he wanted. No one could influence him in any way since Yashamaru's betrayal yet the girl had come closer to it than Gaara could expect. She had almost made him kill her, just like she'd promised earlier.

 _Almost_ , Gaara thought with a satisfied nod. The word was crucial. He had to admit the girl was stubborn but he still remained the master of his own destiny. If she was ever going to die from his hands, he would be the one to decide where and when her existence would be erased.

Free from any doubt and anxiety, he smirked to himself.

"You're not going to die," he informed the girl. "You have to live."

She shook her head briefly, lurching suddenly when her hands faltered, and Gaara momentarily indulged in this battle of wills. It would be interesting to see how this would develop but unfortunately the girl had to remain unscathed. Immobilizing her with the sand, he looked down at her as he spoke. "Do you want to get out of here?"

Her eyes screwed shut, she mouthed a few words.

"Do you want to get out of here?" he repeated, louder this time.

Suddenly her gaze snapped at him, her black eyes gleaming as the sparkle of the finest hatred blazed in them and died just as quickly.

"Why don't you just kill me?" she spat, her voice breaking heavily. "You've threatened to kill me so many times but you can't do it! You just can't, you... you—" She choked, spit trickling down her chin.

He couldn't deny that she had a point there.

"It's not that I can't," he explained, realizing that he actually enjoyed this game a little. "I have found a better use for you."

Petrified, she stared at him with wide eyes. Gaara didn't think he could convince her easily but still she seemed to be too terrified for a person who had demanded to be killed just minutes ago.

And then the realization dawned. She obviously thought that he wanted her for her body. Considering the circumstances he couldn't blame her but he had been too busy with his scheme against Kanryū to notice it.

He had to tell her she got it all wrong. Also, he had to convince her to participate in this game. In other words, they had to have a conversation. And he'd never been good at those.

**The end of the chapter 45.**

**The next chapter:** **Deal**


	45. Deal

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** **46\. Deal~**

Matsuri shuddered inside an iron grip of sand. The grains were wrapped tightly around her but not tightly enough to squeeze the life out of her. There was no way she could fight it. It was like breaking through the rock wall with bare hands.

Saving any power that was left in her, Matsuri relaxed a little, resting inside the hard, rough embrace. She could do nothing until the monster would have his sand withdrawn. For that, she decided to cease struggling, and take care of her weakening limbs.

She was so hungry. Starving was one of the means the traffickers used to subjugate women who were too stubborn to give up. Matsuri had been given a few meals after she had been delivered to the house but then they started with food restrictions again. Of course there were worse things they did to her, and even worse things they would do if she tried something. Her refusal of welcoming the monster into her bed would be severely punished, too, if she would insist on rejection. They still wouldn't rape her as they did with most of other girls, at least not until the monster would do that first.

Hunger seemed to be almost welcome in comparison to that.

"You hungry?" the monster asked as if reading her thoughts. Matsuri didn't reply though because she thought it would be pointless. He waited for a few minutes before he summoned the sand from the gourd, creating the clone, and Matsuri watched another monster exiting the room. "I sent it to bring some takeaways. They do not serve meals here," he said, and the girl shook her head briefly. She refused to stumble over his words. She was exhausted, and trying to find the point where there was none wouldn't be of any help.

It took the clone forever to return. The monster took the takeaways from his clone's hands, and the thing scattered in the air immediately, the grains going back to where they came from. Matsuri's stomach rumbled at the smell of food but she forgot it instantly when the monster withdrew some of the sand bindings.

The redhead didn't come near her though. He only retreated towards the corner of the room, sending the takeaways floating in the air until they hovered just in front of her. The girl swallowed painfully, the delicious smell of yakiniku and kushiyaki being almost too much to bear... and wasn't there a miso soup too?

The monster crossed his hands over his chest. "Eat," he ordered, glancing at her from the corner of his eye. "I know you're hungry," he added, staring at the opposite wall.

Matsuri frowned, wondering how could he know. Her stomach rumbled again, and she realized that the monster must have sensed it somehow due to his sand adhering to her body. But still she refused to accept whatever he could offer.

"Eat," he growled without looking at her. "I don't have much time."

Matsuri decided that she didn't care anymore. Her hands trembling, she grabbed the food and started eating, or engorging rather. It tasted heavenly, and she tried to wolf down as much as she could before any bad luck would interrupt her. Shooting glances at the monster, she noticed that he winced slightly at her behavior but he remained silent. He took a few bites of his kushiyaki, and put the food away.

Matsuri averted her eyes quickly before she would ask him to feed her with the leftovers. She licked the boxes clean, and then she threw them away, licking her fingers too.

The monster cleared his throat. It was a very quiet sound but to her it sounded like a whip's crack. Her gaze snapped at him, the reality charging back as the monster pushed off the wall and approached her, sending the takeaway aside. She tried to back off, to no avail.

"Better now," he said. It wasn't a question.

Matsuri didn't respond to that. Of course her stomach was better. It cried in happiness after devouring the food but she didn't. Actually, she was like a string about to snap.

"Why are you here?" the monster suddenly demanded. "Where did you go after you've left the country?"

"It's not your business," she spat, balling her palms into fists. "Don't go near me or I'll—"

The corners of his mouth quirking slightly, he lifted his hands as if trying to mollify her.

"It may surprise you but I'm not interested in taking those white things off," he drawled sarcastically, pointing at her body with his chin. "I told you that I have found a better use for you."

Matsuri's expression didn't change as she stared at him suspiciously.

"Why don't you just kill me?" she said at last, her voice stubborn albeit faltering slightly.

The monster closed his eyes slowly, the rage obviously bubbling just under the surface. "Stop fucking begging for it or I'll feed you to Kanryū," he said quietly but he could scream as well.

Her hair standing on end, she hesitated. "Who is Kanryū?" she asked in a small voice.

"He's partial to young girls," the monster explained with a cruel smirk. "You wouldn't like him."

Matsuri felt her lower lip quivering. This was just too much for her. She was stuck between the monster she knew and another monster she didn't know... yet.

She lowered her head in utter defeat. "What do you want from me?" she inquired weakly.

"I just want you to do me a favor," he replied immediately. "If you do, I'll do you a favor too."

Matsuri looked at him. Incredible as it was, he really seemed to be cold enough to deny himself any physical pleasure in the name of some unknown scheme unfolding in his mind. She gazed straight into his eyes, thinking hard. He sounded completely believable when declaring his unwillingness to molest her.

She realized that even if he was unpredictable, heartless, blood-thirsty, and evil, he still wasn't a liar.

"Deal," she agreed in a whisper.

The monster nodded, obviously satisfied. "Deal." He made a small move with his hand, and the sand around Matsuri's body loosened. "And now tell me what happened after you've left the country."

Before she could utter, the sand swirled away suddenly, and she fell down to her knees with a yelp. Wincing, she crawled towards the bed and pulled at the disgusting red sheet, wrapping herself in it.

"I've been traveling across Hi no Kuni until I reached Shikuba city," Matsuri said quickly not to try the monster's patience, her eyes downcast. "I've been working in a guesthouse for... I don't know for how long. There were a few Konoha ninjas there, and I hoped I could get myself a teacher. But then I was kidnapped by human traffickers." She shuddered at the memory. "They brought me here."

"You should have killed yourself when you had a chance," he reproached in an indifferent voice.

Matsuri flinched. He was right of course. It was stupid of her to hope she could escape the fate.

"I had no chance," she argued weakly, slumping against the bed.

"You will tell me later about those people," he said. "Now listen. There was a man in the hall. He was standing behind the daimyō's seat. Black hair, black beard, brown eyes. Do you remember him?"

Matsuri couldn't say she remembered anyone so she shook her head. The monster growled angrily.

"I barely remember anything," she hurried to explain. "I was in... some kind of haze, I suppose."

Impatiently, he summoned the sand from his gourd, and it formed a male face that she had never seen before.

"It's Kanryū," he said with a malicious lilt in his voice. "He will try to get you. You are to reject him."

Matsuri was instantly alarmed. "Reject him?" she repeated. "What about... about other men?"

The monster chuckled mirthlessly, his gaze blurry as if he indulged in daydreaming. Only she couldn't imagine him daydreaming.

"They won't come," he said. "But he will."

"What am I supposed to say?" Matsuri inquired, her hope vanishing as she realized she was now being the monster's pawn.

"Depends. You have to make an impression we'll getting along pretty well," he said, shrugging. "I want him to grow jealous."

Matsuri stared at him, lost for words. She might have been able to put on an act but this was rather far beyond her ability.

"You may start with calling me by my name," the monster added, and she felt as if he kicked in her stomach. Obviously mistaking her lack of response for something else than shock and disbelief, he frowned. "Do you know my name?" he asked, earning no reply. Matsuri still didn't digest it, continuously gaping at him as if he grew a second head. Finally he sneered at her darkly. "Oddly enough, I don't go by 'monster'."

**The end of the chapter 46.**

**The next chapter:** **Missions**

yakiniku = (jap. grilled meat) is a Japanese dish. It mayrefer to several things. Vegetables such as bite-sized onion, carrot, cabbage, mushrooms, and bell pepper are usually grilled together. Grilled ingredients are dipped in a sauce known as 'tare' before being eaten.

kushiyaki = skewers of meat and vegetables


	46. Missions

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** **47\. Missions~**

Temari didn't know if she liked other countries or not. They were fascinating because of the differences but they were also annoying. Traveling across forests and meadows tired her more than jumping up and down the desert dunes. The air was too humid in the forest, sticky like a thin suffocating veil glued to her skin, and she couldn't catch the wind even if she heard it, humming in the trees.

Apart from the humidity, the failure also added to her grumpy mood. She couldn't complete the mission for the first time in her life, and it irritated her, biting her self-esteem.

Kankurō took it much better. He didn't seem to be particularly troubled that they were not able to find Matsuri. Ten times he told Temari they were no tracking specialists but they still managed to track Matsuri down. True that it took them a long time, and they completely lost her in Shikuba city, but it was still something. Both of them specialized in combat after all, not tracking.

When Temari was still unconvinced, the puppeteer grew angry and told her to stop grumbling. The wind mistress didn't want to infuriate him further so she did as she was told. On the other hand, she was handling another mission they had been given much better.

The Kazekage decided that the village couldn't wait for clients anymore. Ninjas were obliged to go to cities and settlements to do a little bit of advertising. The council was revolted against it at first but they undoubtedly realized it was no time for being overly proud. Kankurō and Temari were doing the same as others, traveling and spreading news of Sunagakure's new services and lower prices. Temari detested it but she still could force a smile onto her lips when being accosted and jeered at. They invited the richest families to entrust their sons to the village to undergo the basic ninja training, and such people were too often treating them without adequate respect. Kankurō reacted to that badly, hardly able to hold his tongue while being asked to make a puppet show for children. For that reason Temari was in charge of a business, maybe for the better because the beautiful, young lady carrying the giant fan on her back seemed to be more alluring and convincing than a gloomy puppeteer in black.

Temari had wondered before what Baki would do if they told him they couldn't complete the task. As it turned out he wasn't particularly surprised. Moreover he had surprised them, announcing that he had found Matsuri's presumable location. Temari couldn't believe when her former teacher said that the girl was working in the pleasure house in the capital city, mostly being visited by no other than Gaara himself.

Temari decided that she would believe it if she saw it with her own eyes, simple as that. Not that she would have a chance. They had been relegated from the mission, for someone else was continuing it, spying on Matsuri and obviously Gaara either. The last part of Baki's revelation was even more unbelievable. Temari knew of course that Gaara was corrupted but he was still 13. Could it be possible he started having sex with a whore? A whore who was a few months older than him, no less?

Temari couldn't stop thinking of it. For a short time she had been living with Matsuri. She would have sworn the girl was harmless and unlucky enough to fall the innocent victim to Jōseki's conspiracy. True that the Kazekage introduced a new explanation to them. According to his words, Matsuri was suspected of being a spy. Temari had no other choice but to act as if she believed the unbelievable but she still deemed it impossible that someone could fool her so easily.

Baki didn't seem to be particularly worried about Matsuri being an underage prostitute. True that people employing the girl violated the law but the Kazekage's major concern was Gaara's sudden fondness of the daimyō. If the jinchūriki decided to side with the ruler against Suna, the village's chances to regain previous status would be slim indeed, not even mentioning that Gaara knew too many vital secrets. Apparently he didn't still convey them but he could do that at any time.

Surely the daimyō still didn't forgive Suna that they attacked Konoha without settling it with him first although there were obviously some people close to the ruler who were against employing Gaara. From what Temari had heard, guards commander - Kanryū was his name - had come to Suna not so long ago, demanding the detailed information on Gaara's victims, random ones in particular. People said that Kanryū wasn't interested in Gaara's mission reports at all. Oddly enough, the man didn't ask about Matsuri too, which meant that either she had been connected to the daimyō from the very beginning or she was hiding her identity while being in the capital city, both cases pretty much suspicious to the council.

Temari sighed inwardly, not for the first time wondering if she wouldn't be better somewhere else. But still she wasn't delighted at the prospect of becoming a nukenin. Since her father died everything had gone to ruin, and even if she hated many things in her previous life, she couldn't stop thinking that recently she was thrown out of the frying pan into the fire.

**The end of the chapter 47.**

**The next chapter:** **Gone missing**


	47. Gone missing

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** **48\. Gone missing~**

Gaara was growing impatient. A week had passed since he went to the housemother and demanded the girl for himself, and Kanryū still didn't make a move since then. Every day Gaara went to the house, pretending to enjoy his time with the girl. The assassination attempts on the daimyō ceased completely by that time. Some of the assassins were truly powerful but they still ended up buried within Gaara's Sabaku Sōsō. What a shame he couldn't do that to the housemother either.

The woman had angered him, arguing to no end that only daimyō had the privilege to claim any woman his, off-limits to other men until he would give his permission. Gaara had only shrugged, telling her that if she was so eager to follow the rules she ought to release Natsuko instantly because the girl was a minor. The housemother had gasped, enraged, insisting that each and every woman working there was of legal age.  _Natsuko is tiny but she is 17 for certain_ , she had said, and Gaara had laughed in her face.

 _Don't you dare do anything to her_ , he had warned.  _She's mine and I will protect her. Keep my secret safe and I will keep your secrets safe_ , he had added because he became certain by that point that the woman was somehow connected to the traffickers.

Finally, she had agreed but Gaara knew she would betray him the very first favorable time. That was why he needed to advance. Someone would discover soon that the daimyō told him to share, and the conspiracy would be uncovered.

Entering the house, the redhead nodded to the housemother wordlessly, knowingly. She responded with a wry smile, staying where she was, because he had let her know before that he wanted no usher there. He realized then that all women were always waiting in the hall except for those who would be busy with their clients at the moment. Since Natsuko was never with them, they must have realized that something extraordinary was going on. In other words, his time was almost up.

The redhead entered the familiar room noiselessly, opening the lock with his sand. There was no one inside. Instantly alarmed, he scanned the room carefully. Nothing was out of place. Minutes were ticking in his head as he waited. Five. Gaara released some sand from the gourd and created the clone. Ten. The clone went downstairs, bringing the housemother soon. Fifteen. The sand swirled around the woman's throat.

"Where is she?" Gaara asked quietly.

"Kanryū-sama took her from here by order of the daimyō," the woman replied in a trembling voice. Gaara's fists clenched slightly, and his chest heaved. Closing his eyes momentarily, he sent the woman away with a dismissing wave of his hand. Being left alone, he kept his breathing even, not letting the wild delight out. Only corners of his mouth quivered slightly.

Obviously Kanryū was better opponent than Gaara had thought, and hunting was much more fun when the opponent was tough.

The sand clone scattered in the air, slithering into the gourd. Imperiously, Gaara strode downstairs and exited the house, heading towards the arena, where his clone was accompanying the daimyō. Naturally, the ruler had no idea how to distinguish the clone from a real person. For that he was certain it was Gaara himself protecting him.

The redhead walked towards the arena, his pace calm. The guards made no move to stop him, and soon he was standing next to his clone behind the daimyō's seat. Swiftly changing places with the clone, he crossed his hands upon his chest. The daimyō only glanced at him, catching the glimpse of the sand clone stealthily dissipating. Using his Suna no Kanchi to secure the area, Gaara could enjoy the tournament a little although he was impatient to proceed with the plan.

After an hour daimyō suddenly beckoned him. Gaara stepped closer and bent slightly towards his master.

"Yes, my lord?"

"You didn't ask about the girl," daimyō remarked.

"I didn't want to disturb you, my lord."

"Don't you want to know what happened to her?"

"The housemother said that Kanryū-sama took her from there by your order."

"Indeed," the daimyō replied. He leaned backwards, his forearms settled comfortably on armrests. "From what he gathered, Sunagakure no Kazekage considers her a spy from another hidden village. I told Kanryū to interrogate her."

Gaara clenched his teeth slightly, wondering if the girl could deliver any sensitive intel on him. She was carrying many secrets but Gaara was only interested in those concerning mostly him. The daimyō obviously had his own spies amongst Suna ninjas but the old bastard kept their identities and information they were giving secret.

"She is not a spy," Gaara said after a few minutes.

"Time will tell," the daimyō said smoothly.

Gaara nodded, and straightened up, his expression deceptively calm as his eyes scanned the arena while his third eye flew away unnoticed.

**The end of the chapter 48.**

**The next chapter:** **Interrogation**


	48. Interrogation

 A bit of warning: Unnecessary cruelty and blood. Just the old Gaara on the loose.

o0o

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **49\. Interrogation~**

After forty minutes of questioning, and fifteen minutes of being roughed up, Matsuri couldn't bear it anymore. She answered all questions the interrogators asked but they still weren't satisfied. Matsuri panted heavily, tasting her own blood, it's salty and bitter tang resembling that of tears. However she was certain it would become much worse in hours to come. The man whom face she had come to know after the monster showed it to her told the interrogators 'not to excessively flaw her.' The girl's only hope was the monster's help but he still didn't come while Matsuri did all she could. She honestly answered all questions she had been asked, without hiding anything, but she could have made something up as well, and it wouldn't make much difference. Because of the deal she had made with the monster before, she was talking about him in a familiar manner, ditching any honorifics, but it only angered that Kanryū guy. For that reason, Matsuri stopped insisting that Gaara would come for her. Instead she tried to induce a kind of trance she could slip away into, hopefully reducing the pain.

Suddenly the door lock squeaked and grated, and all men present in the room turned their heads to see the lock being undone. The door opened wide with a small creak, revealing the narrow corridor lit with torches. There was no one behind the door though, and Kanryū frowned suspiciously, wordlessly ordering his subordinates to get ready for attack. Two men approached the doorway noiselessly when Matsuri coughed and sputtered, swallowing desperately. Everyone jumped, heads snapping at her, muttering profanities. When Kanryū looked at the doorway again, he saw two of his men standing near the door missing.

"Shinji? Ryōji?" he whispered, furrowing. "Where the hell are you?"

There was no response, only silence being occasionally interrupted by torches' cracking and Matsuri's heavy gasps. Slowly, Kanryū drew his two kodachi from their sheaths, tilting his head to point at Matsuri. The last interrogator walked towards the girl, holding her in his grasp, warning her in a quietest whisper not to speak.

Matsuri only nodded, slumping against him with her head low, sputtering from time to time. Suddenly the man's grip loosened, leaving her without support. Falling to her knees, her hands bound behind her back, she didn't think she could even find any strength in herself left.Hearing the horrible male scream, she straightened, looking up quickly, only to screw her eyes shut in a futile attempt to erase the gruesome image of what the monster was doing to Kanryū. Sputtering again, she began throwing up the food and blood, and when she was finally empty, the bile burned her throat, heavy tears welling in her eyes. Thankfully, the horror didn't last long, and there was finally silence, interrupted by the monster's quiet steps.

"Get up," he snarled impatiently, cutting the ties with the kunai. Matsuri started rubbing her numb hands and rope imprints on her wrists. Not trusting her legs to support her weight, she crawled towards the wall, where she stood up tardily, leaning heavily against the cold stones. In the meantime, the monster wiped the entire room clean with his sand, and headed towards the exit, beckoning her. Matsuri followed him in silence, her breathing labored and heavy as she supported herself against the wall. The monster shut the door silently, the sand slithering in and out the door lock, and they went away. There were several closed doors there.They encountered no one though, as they sneaked down the corridor and upstairs.

"Quiet," the monster ordered, and before Matsuri could react, his sand wrapped around her, lifting her high towards the ceiling, where it put her onto the narrow ledge. The girl pressed her back against the wall while the sand swirled down into the gourd. She was tired, cold and hurting. Her teeth were chattering but she knew that if she would fall down he wasn't probably going to catch her.

The monster made a few hand seals and transformed into Kanryū. He continued climbing upstairs until he met a few men who were obviously surprised, seeing him.

"Kanryū-sama!" they exclaimed, straightening. Matsuri watched as 'Kanryū' stopped, scrutinizing the five. Confused, they waited for any sign, but something happened then they certainly didn't expect. The guards commander changed into a red-headed boy within a blink, and the five men were incapacitated with his sand, their mouths gagged so they couldn't even cry for help. The monster's sand floated towards Matsuri then, confining her to deliver her like a package to him, and she landed on the floor, descending softly and quietly as a falling feather.

Shivering, the girl looked at him questioningly, suddenly afraid that he would abandon her. The monster swirled the kunai blade in his hand, and licked his lips. Glancing at her, he cut one of the men's throat, quickly and effortlessly. Matsuri gasped, staggering back, as the man made an awful gurgling noise, and the drops of the fresh blood burned her skin. The monster didn't flinch though. He ignored the quaking victim, who was choking on his own blood. Turning to face her, the monster presented the bloodied weapon to her. She stared at him in shock, and he stared back, his expression menacing when she didn't move. “Take it,” he murmured.

Matsuri shook her head, her lips trembling in panic. Her gaze flickered to the men confined within the sand when the monster spoke.“I'm counting to three,” he announced calmly.

Matsuri took the kunai on the count of three, her hand trembling so much that the red drops fell from the tip.

“You said you will help me out of here,” she said in a dying voice, and he shrugged, his face almost serene.

“I did. You're not in the whorehouse anymore.”

Matsuri closed her eyes, remembering how she had been kidnapped. She had the same feeling right now. This nightmare was all unfair, horrible, and she couldn't escape from it.

“Pick one of them, and put the kunai against his throat,” the monster demanded. “Now.”

Matsuri stepped closer to the man. She could see his eyes, wide with terror, begging for mercy. She knew that those eyes would haunt her for the rest of her life. The blade in her hand turned out to be heavier to her than all sand in the desert. She just couldn't lift it. Tears pouring down her cheeks, she sniffled. She had once thought it would be easy. There was a weapon in her hand, and the immobilized enemy in front of her. Nothing should be easier than stabbing him in his stomach but she couldn’t do it.

Obviously, killing was not so easy as the innocent believed.

“He wouldn't hesitate if you changed places,” she heard the monster's velvety voice behind her. “It's either you or them.”

The girl closed her eyes, shaking so hard that she could barely stand. The monster was right, of course. These man were of the same kind as Kanryū's subordinates. They would never let her go. They wouldn't show any mercy. But still...

“I can't,” she admitted, biting her lower lip.

“You have to,” he whispered in her ear, and she flinched when she realized he was standing right behind her. “If you don't, I will leave you here with five dead bodies.”

Matsuri wept openly.

“You said that—that you will help me out of here,” she cried. “Please, I—I just can't—”

“Put the kunai against his throat,” he breathed, and the girl obeyed. The blade tip touched the man's skin, and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down. Matsuri gasped when she saw the thin red line left on the fair skin. She wanted to withdraw her hand but the monster grasped her balled fist, keeping it in place. His fingers were cold and dry, and she fought to shake his grip off, to no avail.

“Since it's your first time, I will help you,” he whispered eerily, slashing the kunai into the man's throat. Matsuri screwed her eyes shut and opened her mouth to scream but the monster put his hand over her mouth, effectively hindering the noise from coming out. “Quiet,” he ordered in a harsh whisper. “Be good or you will never get out of here.”

She didn't want to look at their victim but she couldn't stop herself from glancing at the man. His body was twitching as the blood spurted from deep gash. The sand wrapped around him loosened, and his head lolled back, the gaping gash showing various shades of red inside. Matsuri stepped backwards instinctively, bumping into the monster. He gripped her arm, swallowing the trembling breath as if in delight, and pushed her towards another victim.

“No,” she whispered, and he walked away immediately, leaving her behind and taking his sand with him as the grains began to fall, about to reveal two dead bodies and release three survivors.

**The end of the chapter 49.**

**The next chapter:** **Stains**

Shinji and Ryōji - OCs whose names are borrowed from Shinseiki Evangelion characters.

Kanryū's style of fighting using two kodachi is slightly based on Shinomori Aoshi's style but of course Kanryū is not even near Aoshi's level of skills. (Shinomori Aoshi is a Rurouni Kenshin character btw)

 

"Killing is not so easy as the innocent believe." ~Albus Dumbledore.

 


	49. Stains

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

 **~Chapter** **50.** **Stains**

Gaara couldn't remember his first killing. Quite effortlessly, Shukaku had broken through frail barriers the jinchūriki had tried to set against the beast, and someone had died despite Gaara's efforts. The boy didn't even know how old he was when it happened. The outer world was distant to him from the very beginning, the most distinct thing being the sharp, raspy voice in his head. The voice he could never shut away.

Since Yashamaru's death he had never tried to sever his link with the bijū again. On the contrary, he began to listen to the voice of his 'mother' eagerly, following its orders and prompts. The chilling coldness kept him in its grasp but he had learned how to make it go away. The pulsating gushes of hot blood embraced him whenever he wanted, providing the warmth that he craved for. 'Mother' was satisfied too when he branded the world with her hatred, taking as many lives as he chose, leaving behind orphaned children, and bereft comrades of those who had died from his hands.

Only now he began to question if 'mother' existed at all.

From what Yashamaru had said Gaara gathered that his mother Karura hated him because she had to die as a sacrifice. It rather made no sense. If the woman had known she was going to die because of carrying the demon's vessel, she shouldn't have given her consent. From what Gaara had heard about his mother, he knew she hadn't been suicidal, which meant that she had been forced to agree to the sealing. Obviously Yondaime Kazekage had used her as a tool either, throwing her away when she hadn't been necessary anymore. If that had been the case, she most likely detested her husband even more than she hated her son that took her life away.

Gaara didn't actually know if his guesses were correct but the fact remained that 'mother' hadn't been particularly disturbed when he left Sunagakure. Apparently her hatred towards the village wasn't as strong as Gaara used to believe. Or, maybe, there was no 'mother' at all. Maybe Karura died and left the world behind, and the only thing that remained was the sand demon. Not that it really mattered though. If it was actually Karura's will inside the sand, she simply used Gaara as a tool either, and he decided that he didn't like it at all. His mother obviously sided with Shukaku, tormenting her son each time he resisted  _bij_ ū's demands. For that reason Gaara didn't care anymore. Mother or not, there were games of his own that he wanted to play, and plots he wanted to develop.

Also, there were discoveries he hadn't known before that he wanted to make them.

When he turned his back to the girl, listening to her stifled weeping, the waves of heat rushed through him, the feeling intense enough to make his breathing hitch. He didn't actually plan to leave the girl alone but she didn't know that. She was supposed to make her own choice, and the redhead wasn't surprised at all when she called after him, sniffling and crying quietly.

"Wait... Wait! I—" she trailed off as he turned his head a little to look. Crushing her lower lip between her teeth, she nodded. "Don't leave me here," she whispered.

Gaara crossed his arms over his chest, watching her wordlessly. The sand bindings kept three victims-to-be firmly in their place, their fronts exposed in case the girl would decide that stabbing their stomachs would be easier. The girl stepped up closer, lifting the kunai with trembling hand.

"They won't forgive you," Gaara purred. "They will hate you until they die.Their wives will hate you, their children will hate you, and their comrades will hate you for what you've done."

Shaking her head, the girl rambled under her breath as if she didn't hear his words at all. "D—don't oh kami-sama please let—let me out of here I can't please please I—I don't want to, kami-sama—!"

Gaara watched her as she tried to imitate his movements from before but there was a great amount of strength and skill required to cut a person's throat efficiently. The girl was too weak, and all she achieved was causing a shallow wound. Blood trickled from it as the man made an awful noise and began to struggle against the sand. The front of his coat was stained with red, and the girl put her hand over her mouth in horror, only to realize her fingers were stained with blood too. Falling to her knees, she sputtered.

"Get up," Gaara said indifferently. "This is taking too long."

She raised her eyes, staring at him. Despair, loathing, and a bit of insanity, mixed in her expression. He could look past her defenses eventually, getting the taste of the most evil delight. Slaughtering was really satisfying but he would have never thought before that tainting an innocent soul could make him feel so complete. More complete than he had ever felt before.Until now he always thought the sight of people being crushed with his sand was what he enjoyed the most. He could make it fast and clean, or slow and bloody; an expert on painting with insides and blood. The girl's perfect image made him realize what he had missed. On her knees, she sobbed and shivered, her defenses crumbling as her pure soul was inevitably going to be stained with red.True that she told him before that she wanted her revenge. At least she believed that she wanted it but she had no idea what she was talking about.

Until someone would show her.

**The end of the chapter 50.**

**The next chapter: The damage done**


	50. The damage done

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** **51.** **The damage done**

Kankurō was pacing to and fro impatiently. He strained his ears but he couldn't catch any sound coming from the inside. Temari was there for what seemed to be hours. He was sure that he would be there for much longer.

What was the Kazekage thinking?

From what Kankurō had heard, many ninjas had already been subjected to the questioning. The Kazekage wanted to know their goals and motivation. He asked each and every ninja the same question.  _Why do you want to stay in the village while so many others run away?_

This was really crazy.

Kankurō didn't want to talk about that. Actually, he was slightly anxious that he would reveal too much. There were questions he didn't ask himself, and he didn't want others to ask those questions either. He was a ninja for his entire life. There was no place there for a question 'why'. It had just happened. He took orders from his superiors because that was expected from a ninja. Basically, he was a tool, and tools are to do what they are for. They are not to be inquired about their goals and motivation.

Obviously the Kazekage had a different opinion on that. Kankurō would be okay with that if not for the circumstances. The puppeteer was used to having different opinion but he always kept it to himself. He never crossed the line, never disobeyed, never did anything that his superiors would disapprove.

Or rather, he had never done it before the village decided that they want to kill Gaara. Suddenly, Kankurō acted without any doubt. Not thinking much about it, he freed Gaara, and set him loose.

The puppet master came to a halt and squeezed the bridge of his nose with two fingers, realizing that what he actually feared was being questioned about his younger brother. Kankurō always refused to ponder over Gaara. He had never indulged in discussing him at length with Temari either. For that reason, Kankurō's feelings concerning Gaara were a complete mess. If he would be forced to talk about Shukaku's host, anything could come out. Literally anything.

_I can't let it happen_ , the puppeteer thought, a bit desperate.

The door opened, and Temari emerged, looking tired but not overly disturbed. Their eyes linked for a second but either Temari didn't have any secret message to convey or she just wanted him to deal with this on his own. Taking in the deep, quiet breath, Kankurō stepped inside.

"Kazekage-sama," he said, his voice slightly tense. Feeling lost, he took the seat in front of his superior's desk. An anger was bubbling inside him but he couldn't let it show. The room, the desk, all of it reminded him too much of his father, and the way the man was talking with his older son. At the very beginning, Kankurō had tried to talk to his father sometimes. To give and receive questions and answers. Soon he had realized Yondaime Kazekage's mind had been too busy with things, which the man had decided Kankurō couldn't probably understand.Kankurō had learned not to talk about what nagged him the most. He had learned to read between lines and focus on what was bothering the Kazekage. Unfortunately, it had always been Gaara. Well, maybe not always, because there had been a terrorized, weakening village too...

The puppeteer clenched his teeth, forcing himself not to blink until the discomfort made the unwelcome memories go away. Through the thin veil of tears, he stared at the current Kazekage with renewed determination. This was  _not_  his father. True that there had been a certain likeness between Baki and Yondaime Kazekage once but it had been since long gone.  _It's gone_ , Kankurō repeated inwardly.  _I am alone. I owe him nothing._

"I'm sure you have heard the rumors so I'll make it short," Baki said in a formal tone. "Why do you want to stay here? You can go wherever you want. You can start a new life, far from this miserable place Suna had become."

"Because of my sister," the puppeteer blurted out immediately, grateful that an answer appeared at the right time. "She's staying so I'm staying too."

Baki nodded slowly, the gaze of his only eye piercing through his former student. Kankurō saw clearly that the Kazekage wasn't satisfied but the puppet master was determined not to elaborate.

"So you're basically saying that your loyalties lie with Temari? With your family?" Baki inquired, and Kankurō winced inwardly. The Kazekage was trying to make it look as if Kankurō wasn't loyal to the village. Not far from truth, actually...

"With Temari, yes. With my family, no," Kankurō said in a clipped tone, crossing his arms over his chest. He wanted the Kazekage would remember that Gaara was also a part of Kankurō's family. A part Kankurō wasn't loyal to... at least officially.

The revelation was earth-shaking. Kankurō stared at Baki, struggling to keep his calm. The way Baki had said those words!  _Your loyalties lie with Temari. With your family._  Those were questions but the Kazekage made them sound as if they were statements. Suddenly what Kankurō had said at the beginning turned out to be a naked truth. He didn't realize it before but now he knew he would leave the village if Temari left. He stayed because she decided to stay either.

He would go against the entire village if they tried to harm her.

Baki watched him constantly. Kankurō swallowed, realizing that the damage had been already done. He came here, determined not to reveal the slightest bit of truth. He thought it would be convenient to hide behind Temari, to declare that she was his reason to stay. And Baki... Could it be possible that nothing of this was a surprise to him? He had said before that he suspected that the siblings helped Gaara escape, after all.

Even though it was too late Kankurō finally realized that obviously their former teacher had come to know them better than they thought.

**The end of the chapter 5** **1** **.**

**The next chapter: The revelation**


	51. The revelation

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** _**5** _ _**2** _ _**.** _ **The revelation**

Baki steepled his fingers, glancing from under his brow at the young shinobi seated in front of him. Kankurō did an excellent job to control himself after what had been said although Baki could see in his former student's eyes that Kankurō knew that the damage had been done. Not that the Kazekage considered it to be the real damage. He expected to hear it from Kankurō; at least a part of it. What was worrying a little that Kankurōhadn't recognized the nature of his feelings before he spoke.

The Kazekage decided to let it slip. This conversation had obviously been a valuable lesson to Kankurō, and Baki was rather certain that the young puppeteer would later act on what he had learned. However there were a few questions that still needed answers. Apparently, the siblings were more loyal to each other than to the village but would they go as far as to ally with some unpredictable nukenins? What if - and that would be really bad - they became Sasori's agents?

Baki decided he would get closer to getting answers to those questions if he could find out to what extent Temari and Kankurō were fond of Gaara. He had been planning to ask them a few questions about their younger brother anyway.

The Kazekage felt it moments before he saw it; the little stirring in the air. The ANBU ninja appeared behind his back, leaning forward to mutter a quiet message for Kazekage's ears only."Kazekage-sama, Isago has returned."

Baki nodded, and the ANBU left just as inconspicuously as he had come before. Kankurō watchedhim, partly relieved that the conversation with his superior had been interrupted. Baki thought that maybe wearing a face-paint made Kankurō think his emotions were effectively concealed once and for all, and he put no conscious effort anymore into mastering control over them. Well, whatever the reason was, Baki was sure Kankurō had realized that he needed to take a few lessons on managing his emotions from Temari.

"I have to release you temporarily, Kankurō," the Kazekage announced. "Isago has returned, and I want to hear the report. Please wait until we're done, both of you. I want to talk about Gaara."

Definitely, Kankurō didn't like that. He froze in his movements momentarily, piercing Baki with his gaze. The moment of discomfort and anxiety was gone,andKankurō stood up, adjusting the puppets on his back.

"Kazekage-sama," he said tensely, and exited the room, leaving Baki alone. The Kazekage crossed his arms over his chest, remembering the last report from the capital city. The Suna spy located there had reported that actually Gaara was associating himself with the girlnamed Matsuri. For that, it had become a hard task to capture her and deliver to the village because the daimyō would certainly be utterly displeased if someone tried to disturb his minion's affairs.

Baki wondered how come the daimyō allowed anyone to hire an underage whore. It was against the law. Did the daimyō do that because of Gaara? Was Gaara fond of the girl in any way? Baki needed this information but first he needed to see his right hand man who had just returned from Konohagakure.

The Kazekage's musings were interrupted by knocking on the door.

"Come in," Baki ordered, impatient to hear the news. Isago went inside, his clothes sprinkled with sand dust.

"Kazekage-sama," he said with a nod. Baki allowed himself to smile, nodding in a response. There were so few people like Isago. He was brave, strong, truthful, and upright. He trusted in Baki completely, and Baki trusted in him.

"Hungry?" the Kazekage asked.

"No." Isago closed his eyes briefly, and Baki knew his subordinate was preparing to report. "But the water would be welcome," the jōnin said, opening his left eye, and glancing at Baki. Closing it again, he took a deep breath. "The new Hokage had been instated without difficulty. Before she had reached the village, Konoha had been attacked. Rumors say that the attackers were wearing black coats painted with red."

Baki straightened in his seat, alerted. Isago waited for a second, then continued.

"They seriously injured Hatake Kakashi, one of the most experienced Konoha jōnins. From what I've heard, he'd been close to death before Tsunade-sama healed him. The other victim who had been affected was Uchiha Sasuke."

The Kazekage furrowed. He had learned before that there was a single member of the Uchiha clan who was still alive. Baki saw the boy fighting during the chūnin exam. The boy was good. Not as good as some of his legendary ancestors but still good.

"Kazekage-sama, I had to contact S-person," Isago said quietly. Baki snapped his gaze at the jōnin angrily. Sunagakure had implanted a sleeping agent in Konoha many years ago, never using him before. "The details were impossible to get any other way," Isago said with an apologetic lilt in his voice. "Please listen, Kazekage-sama."

With a huff, Baki nodded his head, urging his subordinate to continue.

"Two nukenins had come to Konoha before the new Hokage was instated," Isago repeated. "Both of them were wearing similar clothing to the ones who had attacked our village. It may be a coincidence but the uniforms prove thatattackers are a part of some organization, most likely."

Baki rubbed his chin between his thumb and index finger. It definitely made sense.

"Currently, Hatake Kakashi is one of the most powerful jōnins of Konoha," Isago emphasized. "They were able to defeat him though. It seems that they planned to sneak into the village but he spotted them." The jōnin lowered his voice. "It hasn't been confirmed yet but it is believed that Uchiha Itachi was one of the attackers."

Baki leaned forward in his chair. "Did he arrive to finish his brother?"

Isago sipped the water before he replied."Probably yes but his main target was Uzumaki Naruto."

"Uzumaki...?" Baki frowned. He remembered that name. Uzumaki Naruto was a genin. He was participating in the chūnin exam too. He must have been the offspring of Uzumaki clan. As far as Baki remembered, Uzumaki boy was a part of Hatake Kakashi's team along with the Uchiha and a girl... What was her name? Baki couldn't remember.

The Uzumaki and the Uchiha. Descendants of destroyed clans put in one team. Pretty much interesting. Plus, all of them were involved in the recent events. Oddly enough, Uchiha Itachi, another descendant of since long destroyed clan, was involved too.

What the hell was happening?

"What did they want from him?" Baki asked.

"Excuse me, Kazekage-sama, but do you know who Uzumaki Naruto is?"

The Kazekage shrugged, and explained everything he knew about the noisy blonde.

"I decided to get more information on him," Isago said. "He's an orphan. No one knows who his parents were. They are not mentioned anywhere. Moreover it seems that their identities are kept secret on purpose."

Baki sat in silence, aware that these were in fact priceless details, worthy of engaging the S-person.

"Konoha had been friends with Uzushiogakure since the very beginning," Baki muttered.

"The members of Uzumaki clanwere known for their red hair," Isago said. "However Uzumaki Naruto is fair-haired. Uzumaki Mito, and Uzumaki Kushina, were redheads."

"And hosts of Kyuubi," Baki added. It was meant to be just an observation but suddenly the Kazekage froze. "He's thirteen years old," he whispered. "Like Gaara."

Isago nodded gravely but Baki didn't notice that. He was too busy with the truth being unfold in front of him.

Thirteen... Thirteen years ago Kyuubi raided Konoha. The last host had been pregnant then. No one knew what happened but Baki presumed Uzumaki Kushina must have died during childbirth. Everyone thought the child died, too. But what if it survived?

It was impossible to seal the bijū inside the human. There were only a few people capable of this. Suna could only seal Shukaku because the beast's chakra had been confined inside the kettle. Uzumaki Mito had been able to seal Kyuubi inside herself but as a member of Uzumaki clan she had obviously been fūinjutsu specialist.

Who could have sealed Kyuubi inside the newborn baby when Uzumaki Kushina was dying?

Baki closed his eyes, remembering Uzumaki Naruto. Those fair, spiky hair... How could he overlook that?"Is the boy the son of Yondaime Hokage?" he inquired.

Isago relaxed in his chair, sighing."There is no proof that he is."

Baki nodded absent-mindedly, because he remembered something. They said Uchiha Madara had the power to control Kyuubi. Was that the reason Konoha elders put the Uzumaki in one team with Uchiha Sasuke? Did they expect the young Uchiha to become another Madara?

"Tell me what you think," the Kazekage ordered.

"I think the boy is the son of Yondaime Hokage and Uzumaki Kushina. She must have taught someone the technique powerful enough to seal Kyuubi," Isago answered. "When she died, and Yondaime was killed either, that person had sealed Kyuubi inside the baby. There are a few ninjas in Konoha powerful enough to do that. Personally, I believe it must have been Jiraiya."

Baki furrowed. "Jiraiya?"

"He's taking care of the Uzumaki boy recently. The two left the village for training," Isago said.

_Teaching the boy how to control Kyuubi, huh?_  Baki thought.  _Cunning, that._

"Most likely, they decided to train the boy intensely after they saw what Gaara is capable of," Isago added, and Baki cursed inwardly. Jiraiya had defeated Gaara. Sannin must have learned much from that fight. That was why Konoha elders decided that Jiraiya would teach Naruto. Obviously, they wanted the boy to become the weapon.

If they only knew that such a weapon could slip all too easily through their fingers.

**The end of the chapter 5** **2** **.**

**The next chapter: Disconnected**

Uzushiogakure (Village Hidden by Whirling Tides) - a shinobi village in the Land of Whirlpools, destroyed during war, where Uzumaki clan comes from.

fūinjutsu -  sealing techniques


	52. Disconnected

**The Longest Road**

o0o0o0o

**~Chapter** **5** **3** **.** **Disconnected**

Being dragged in some unknown direction by the monster, Matsuri panted and stumbled continuously, shuffling her feet against the ground. The hour was late and the daily bustle had considerably decreased, more people staying safely in their houses than walking around. Even if they would walk around at this hour, the monster's sand eye was scanning the area before them to detect any possible hitch. Matsuri didn't quite know if she cared or not. After what had happened before, her mind shut itself somewhat, making her feel light-headed and empty. The monster had warned the girl before not to speak and she was still silent albeit constantly shooting uncertain glances here and there. At first, she thought he would take her to the house but he would have to find some place first where she could wash away the blood. Soon Matsuri realized that it wasn't the case. The monster dragged her into the narrow cranny where the solid fence met the wall of the house on the corner. Matsuri had no idea where she was but she came to a halt immediately when her bare foot sunk into something slimy and stinking. She made a quiet 'ugh' sound but the redhead ignored it, pulling her even deeper into the darkness. Trembling, she wrapped her arms around her small frame, rubbing her skin in a futile effort to produce some warmth. Wordlessly, the monster summoned the sand and created the clone. The thing went away to do its work and only then he spoke in the quietest murmur. "There are merchants' wagons on the other side. You will go there and hide inside. In the morning they will leave."

Matsuri stared, blinking, as she processed what he had said.

"You will go with them," the monster continued. "If you ever come back, you will die. And if you tell anyone what happened here, you will die more painful death than Kanryū."

The sand grains wound round Matsuri's left wrist. She gasped and brandished her hand, to no avail. Wincing, she kept her arm straight, as if she suddenly found it repulsive.

"Is someone waiting for me there?" she asked quietly, uncertainly.

The monster gazed at her as if she'd gone mad.

"No," he seethed.

The girl moved her lips but no sound went out. Basically, the monster had just told her that she was going to die. No way the merchants wouldn't notice that someone was stealing a ride. Once they would give her to the city guards, she would be doomed.

He promised her that he would help her get away. Obviously, he lied. Matsuri knew that she ought to feel something at the realization. She ought to be mad, despairing. But there was nothing.

Silently, she turned away from the monster, facing the concrete fence. She didn't even flinch when the sand lifted her high and then she landed safely on the other side. Without looking back, she started crawling towards the wagons. The guards were busy with the distraction the sand clone provided but she didn't know about that. Not that she would care even if she knew. Her mind blank, she finally reached her destination. Glancing over her shoulder, she took in the tracks she had left in the sand. The grains were moving on their own, leveling the surface until there was no sign of her movement. The sand became flawless and no one wouldn't find her body-prints in it.

Matsuri parted the tilt and climbed up the wagon, concealing herself inside. There were some closedbarrels and containers there, and several rolls of fabric between them. Unable to stand on her feet any longer, the girl threw herself onto the rolls, falling into a half-asleep state, more like catatonia than a real slumber. Her entire body was numb, and she wasn't able to move a finger. Her mind, on the other hand, was producing myriads of fleeting images, none of them being comforting or peaceful. However those images were in the strange way disconnected to her emotions. Matsuri had never been in such state before, and she wondered if it was possible that after everything she had been through she was finally going insane.

_T_ **he end of the chapter 5** **3** **.**

**The next chapter: Vigilant**


	53. Vigilant

**The Longest Road**

**o0o0o0o**

**~Chapter** **5** **4** **.** **Vigilant**

Gaara watched the girl disappearing under the wagon tilt. He truly hoped she would survive. He wanted her to carry her tainted soul away, to spread the misery around the world. The seeds of insanity had been sown inside her. Not that the symptoms of the disease would be able to be noticed soon. It would slowly consume everything she would touch until it would be too late, and she would realize that she had become a plague.

He briefly regretted he wouldn't be able to see the outcome of this but the sear of pain going through his skull removed all thoughts in an instant. Wincing, Gaara started breathing slowly, trying to relax since he had discovered not so long ago that it slightly helped to ease the pain. It would be best if he could wait in some quiet corner until the pain would go away. Unfortunately, he had to go back to the ruler, and fast. There was a clone there but clones tended to dissipate when his head hurt like that, causing him to lose concentration. The last thing he needed was the daimyō realizing what his trusted bodyguard was actually doing without permission.

Cursing the entire world, Gaara headed for the mansion, where his master was sleeping. The man was still unaware of what happened to Kanryū and his men but Gaara knew pretty well what would happen once he would find out. There would be an investigation started. How convenient the girl had been involved into this before. Unbelievable as it was, they would have no other choice than to accept that she could actually be a spy. Moreover, they would think that she was talented enough to murder such exquisite soldiers. The suspicion would be born, and hidden villages would begin to distrust each other. Maybe there would even be a war? Gaara decided it would be just perfect if he could spread hatred so intense that it would turn into the actual war. If only his head would stop aching so much at the moment...

The redhead massaged his temples momentarily. There was a new moon that night, and Ichibi should finally learn to lie down when the night was dark, and no irritating silver glowinstigated the beast to struggle against the seal. Gritting his teeth, Gaara hurried to the mansion, trying not to get distracted. If any guard would see him, they would have to die instantly. Not that Gaara cared for them. He would kill them without second thought but it would cause another uproar, and the redhead decided it could ruin his further plans.

He approached the mansion stealthily, slightly annoyed by the lack of perceptiveness amongst guards. Or maybe it was just the pain making him more irritable than usual. Anyway there was no rush down there, meaning that no one had come yet to report on Kanryū's disappearance. Gaara reached his destination quickly, and switched with the clone. The daimyō had demanded of Gaara before to mark the clones. The ruler wished to be able to distinguish them from the original. The stupid old man trusted Gaara not to deceive him. Wrong move, just like many other ones the daimyō had made before.

Gaara sat down on the floor next to the daimyō's door. His third eye was doing its job, floating here and there even if it seemed that it was no longer necessary. There had been no new assassination attempts for quite a long time but it was most likely lull before the storm. Gaara was aware that if someone would decide to be done with daimyō's reign, they would be most likely determined enough to hire an excessively powerful assassin.

Gaara bared his teeth, remembering being easily defeated by the legendary Konoha shinobi during the invasion. The redhead hated thinking of existence of a shinobi who was powerful enough to defeat him. Gaara was being too hard on himself though, sayingthat he had been easily defeated. Jiraiya had had to put an extra effort to incapacitate the jinchūriki who had been preparing to use Tanuki Neiri no still, Gaara doubted somehow he would have been able to beat the white-haired old man even after releasing Shukaku. Jiraiya was called 'legendary', andwith good reason. His powers were incredible. Gaara had underestimated him, everything about him, until it had been too late.

It was highly unlikely that daimyō's opponents would hire Jiraiya but it never hurt to be careful. There could be more ninjas in the world powerful enough to beat Gaara, loath as he was to admit that. Especially because he was unable to use Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu anymore. That was why he was growing more and morevigilant, forcing himself to stay concentrated even though it seemed thatShukaku decided to dine upon his grilled brain this night.

**The end of the chapter 5** **4** **.**

**The next chapter: The weakening seal**


	54. The weakening seal

.

**The Longest Road**

**o0o0o0o**

**~Chapter 55. The weakening seal~**

Gaara waited impatiently for the dawn to rise. He hoped his head would stop aching, and he wanted the news of Kanryū's death to be broken already. Minutes ticked by as the awaited noise of rushing footsteps and frightened exclamations still wasn't happening. Gaara wondered what was the reason of the delay but nothing appeared to him. Obviously the guards were lazier than he thought. Or maybe they decided to search for their commander on their own before they would conclude that something was wrong indeed.

Minutes turns into hours. Everyone in the mansion woke up, servants bustling around, guards walking here and there, inspecting. Finally, the daimyō emerged from his room too, greeting his bodyguard with a small nod although the ruler's watchful gaze didn't settle on Gaara's face, scanning the place as it always did. Gaara bowed to his master, and followed him wordlessly. The daimyō's daily routine had become sickeningly boring to Gaara but all he was always showing was his usual emotionless façade.

There was another reason of Gaara's impatience to hear reports on Kanryū. A few days prior to the sudden interrogation, which resulted in erasing Kanryū's existence, the daimyō required to watch Gaara training in the desert. They had done it before, and Gaara never raised any objection. Actually, he was proud of his abilities, and even slightly enjoyed the stunned look that was stuck to the daimyō's face whenever the latter watched his bodyguard showing those superhuman powers. However, on this specific day, Gaara felt his migraine growing at the mere thought of any strain let alone long and exhausting session of working on his techniques.

Too bad that there still had been no report from anyone when the time came to head for the point outside the city where Gaara was usually training. Having formed a few solid lumps of sand, Gaara waited until the daimyō and several other people, guards and officials, climbed onto them so Gaara could take them to the desert with his Sabaku Fuyū. It was the fastest and the safest way to get to their destination after all, although it had taken a distinct amount of time to convince Gaara's passengers of using his sand instead of riding donkeys and camels. However, the redhead had never considered the possibility of feeling so ill. He was used to headaches such as they were but this was slightly different. Well, maybe even 'slightly' was not the right word to describe that. It wasn't the usual migraine, during which he would have suffered the white-hot pincers jabbing at his skull. This time, it was more like a thick, reddish cloud, shrouding his mind and blurring his vision to the point of making him shake his head and blink in the futile attempt of removing the thin watery veil, which seemed to be coating his eyeballs constantly.

These were definitely not the best conditions to do the proper training but Gaara had no choice unless he would want to reveal the truth to the daimyō, and cause the latter to lose the trust in his bodyguard in the process.

Usually, the ruler and his men would have been settled on the sand platforms, floating above Gaara, and watching the show he would have been making. No wonder then that they were quite surprised when the redhead put them down onto the ground. They were too far from him to be able to demand explanation though, so Gaara went on to the training, ignoring them. He supposed it would be harder even without having to support the floating lumps with his chakra, and was proved right once he started molding even more chakra. He had planned before to demonstrate to the daimyō the preliminary version of the impressive ninjutsu he had been working on recently but in his current state he decided it would be better to abandon the plan.

Soon it became obvious that he wasn't able to continue. Apart from the headache, he felt like he barely had control over his body. There were also other symptoms that made him go to the daimyō and demand the break.

The ruler, of course, was surprised and dismayed a little.

"But you have just only started," he said with a frown. "How long will it take before you're able to continue?"

Gaara pursed his lips, thinking.

"Is there something that you're not telling me?" the daimyō inquired in a lowered voice and glanced at the other officials, standing a few steps behind.

The redhead cursed his master's perceptiveness. He briefly thought of coming up with some make-up explanation but he could think of nothing that would rise no suspicion. He had to look like it was some temporary, small trouble.

"It's about Shukaku," Gaara finally said. "He's doing something to me."

The daimyō held his breath, his expression alarmed. "Are we in danger?" he breathed.

The jinchūriki shook his head angrily. "No! Not even close. I have to see what's going on though."

"You told me the beast wasn't much of a threat anymore," the daimyō returned, gritting his teeth.

Gaara rolled his head over his shoulders, his eyes closed. This conversation was due to bring the worst out of him. "Shukaku is always a threat," the redhead hissed, lifting his blackened lids. "Underestimating him means death," he added, glaring at his master.

"What do we do then?" the daimyō asked imperiously, his arms folded across his chest.

Instead of answering, Gaara rose the walls of sand around the group. The men gave surprised shrieks, and glowered at the redhead instantly. The sand closed above their heads, forming a dome, with only a few thinnest gaps left to let the air inside. The blackness inside was almost perfect but once their eyes had become used to it, they could see the thin beams coming from the above, filtering through the gaps.

Ignoring the murmuring officials, Gaara stepped away, and sat down on the sand, his back facing the wall. The dome reminded him of the shell he had once been creating before his full transformation into Shukaku. Now, the shell was empty. He was not going to transform ever again.

Closing his eyes, he raised another wall to separate himself from others. Their voices were instantly muffled, and he was once again being enveloped in comfortable silence. Too bad he had no time to wallow in it though. He was going to delve deeper into his subconscious, or at least he was going to give it a try.

A deep, calming breath, then another one. Slowing down his breathing rate deliberately, Gaara imagined the ominous cave, and its dweller. Going down turned out to be harder than he had thought it would. He realized that he couldn't go there as Gaara of the Sand, the powerful jinchūriki. Actually he had no power down there, being reduced to the trembling, defenseless human being, overwhelmed with terror. Gritting his teeth, Gaara remembered how facing the doom actually felt. The darkness sucked him in, and he found himself standing inside the cave, in front of Shukaku. The boy's eyes immediately swept over the rocks the bijū had been chained to. The cracks were going deeper than the last time he had seen them, and there were certainly more of them.

It wasn't possible to overlook what was happening. Turning away from the glittering gaze of sinister, golden eyes, Gaara had to tell himself the truth. Apparently, the seal was going weaker and weaker, and some day it would be completely broken.

**The end of the chapter 55.**

**The next chapter:** **The merchant**


	55. The merchant

.

**The Longest Road**

**o0o0o0o**

**~Chapter 56. The merchant~**

Hotaru wasn't a morning person although he got used to getting up early during many years of travelling with his father. They spent majority of their time driving the horse-drawn wagon, or camel-drawn wagon in case of travelling across Kaze no Kuni.

The young man stretched and yawned in his comfortable bed. Rubbing his eyes, he stood up and cleaned and dressed for the day. He went out of the inn in a leisure pace, heading for the wagon to check it for the last time before they would depart. The guards walking between merchant wagons recognized him and nodded. He nodded back, stifling another yawn and ignoring the rumbling in his stomach. There was no time for breakfast. He had to prepare the wagon for the long journey to Kaminari no Kuni while his father was going to pay for an inn room and make a meal they would eat later while on the road.

There was nothing out of place until Hotaru neared the wagon and instantly noticed that the strings he had carefully put on the wagon floor on the evening prior were now dangling loosely. Hotaru frowned, examining the sand around the wagon. There were many footprints there but none of them went close to the wagon except his own. He reached under the tilt with his keen sense of detecting the evil intentions but he found nothing. Nothing evil at least because he could feel something else on the edge of his consciousness. Undoubtedly, there was someone hiding inside the wagon.

Hotaru stood motionless, pondering. If there would be an enemy inside, he would sense their vileness for sure. Whoever was hiding on the other side of the tilt, obviously had no clear intentions of harming him. Hotaru could call the guards but what he would say? He couldn't say that he sensed someone inside because he had to conceal his true identity at any cost. No one was supposed to know that him and his father were ninjas let alone spies. That would end bad, to say the least.

There were those strings hanging loosely but Hotaru decided it wasn't enough reason for ringing an alarm. What mattered the most was keeping their cover. He took three deep breaths and parted the tilt, already prepared to fight back if he would be attacked. No assault came from the inside though. Nothing happened except of Hotaru's eyes going extremely wide. Even his lips parted a little at the sight of a human form spread across the rolls of precious tapestry.

The young man took in the sleeping girl's distorted features, her brows drawn together as if in pain, her eyes screwed shut and her mouth open in a silent scream. In a few seconds he memorized her brown hair and equally brown patches of dried blood marking her olive skin and her outfit. Or rather lack of outfit since she was wearing basically nothing more than an underwear. Not even mentioning that Hotaru deemed that particular kind of underwear highly inappropriate for a girl her age. Finishing the super quick inspection, he put the tilt in its place, squeezed the bridge of his nose with two fingers, winced, and rolled his head over his shoulders, before he parted the tilt again, climbing inside noiselessly. The girl stirred in her disturbed slumber and he patted her arm lightly, with a lightning speed putting his palm against her mouth before she would make any noise. Her black eyes snapped open, showing an extreme confusion and terror but only for a a few seconds. Then the calmness reflected in her features, her eyes growing empty as she fell under his genjutsu.

Hotaru kneeled next to her, waiting. Inside the genjutsu trap, he watched the girl, trying to determine if she was going to fight it. His genjutsu skills weren't too impressive but the girl didn't seem to be able to fight the illusion anyway. After a few minutes, Hotaru decided that she wasn't a ninja. Apparently she relaxed and gladly surrendered to the peace he had made her believe she was in. Not that he was allowed to leave her. He had to keep the eye contact to effectively keep her under the technique. Now came the difficult part. He needed to alert his father but he couldn't go away nor he could create a clone. If any ninja went across the clone of the supposed merchant, they would certainly be bound to act. That would mean arrest, and the interrogation afterwards. Hotaru had to avoid it by any means.

He eyed the girl lying in front of him. Swiftly, he released her from under the technique, still ready to break her neck in case she woud make any unwanted noise. When she looked at him, and saw him again, he put a finger against his lips to warn her. She backed away from him, nodding vaguely. The guards walked by the wagon and she heard their voices. Her shoulders slumped, and she gazed at the wagon floor indifferently, her eyes empty. Then she began to scratch her left wrist apathetically as if attempting to peel her skin off. Hotaru watched the constant, purposeful movement for a few minutes. Her skin grew red but she obviouly refused to stop. Hotaru left her there, wondering if she wasn't a runaway from some mental institute. He quickly went to seek his father, hoping the girl wouldn't suffer any sudden breakdown during his absence.

It would be easy to kill her to get rid of the problem but Hotaru never killed if he didn't have to. And there was something else that would stop him even if he considered the idea. The odd thing.

Considering the amount of someone else's blood splotched across the girl's body, it was striking that Hotaru sensed no aura of a killer around her at all.

**The end of the chapter 56.**

**The next chapter:** **A fleeting shadow**

Hotaru is a male OC in this story. 'Hotaru' means firefly in Japanese.


	56. A fleeting shadow

**The Longest Road**

**o0o0o0o**

**~Chapter 57. A fleeting shadow~**

The daimyō sat in the comfortable armchair, his bare feet on the rich, furry rug, his palm cradling the cup of sake to make everyone who might be coming inside believe that he was properly drinking. The truth, however, was that the flask was almost empty because he had dried it before quickly, not being in the mood for being ceremonial let alone accepting any company. In the solitude of his rooms, he could finally shrug the prudent albeit overbearing attitude off, as he stared at the cold ashes in the hearth. Obviously, even servants were greatly shaken by the news of Kanryū's disappearance, because they had never forgotten before to light a fire in the ruler's chamber at the chilling desert night. The daimyō wasn't going to chastise them though. One could safely say that the entire city was agitated, servants and officials alike. It didn't happen often – hell, it had never happened before! - that so many men would just disappear.

No witnesses, no traces. Nothing.

They grew soft, the daimyō decided. All of them.  _He_  grew soft, too. He depended too much on Gaara. Since his bodyguard had come to him, the place was safer and safer. The daimyō had been lulled to the false sense of security, and he forgot that the darkest place was under the candlestick.

There were so many possible explanations though. None of them had been dismissed yet. The daimyō's men worked hard to bring all the pieces of the jigsaw together, and the ruler almost envied them that they could do something useful instead of sitting down in front of the extinct fire. He rolled the suspicions over and over in his head, mentally listing all possible outcomes of the investigation. He even considered asking Sunagakure for help if there would be no decent results soon. Speaking of which, he remembered that there was someone at his door who had been a part of Sunagakure once.

"Gaara!" the daimyō called, putting the cup aside. "Come inside!"

His voice wasn't slurred, not even a tad. Sake was a low-alcoholic beverage, and the daimyō was almost as sober as before he had started drinking. Probably it was good, considering what he was going to do.

Gaara opened the door and took a step inside, scanning the place. It was momentary albeit thorough. The daimyō was aware that there was also a third eye floating somewhere there, watching. The redhead shut the door quietly and approached his master, his never wavering calmness grating on daimyō's nerves, and not for the first time. The ruler didn't comment on it though, beckoning on his bodyguard.

Gaara stood at the proper distance from his master, his pale, unblinking gaze trained on the daimyō's face.

"Sake?" the daimyō asked, gesturing towards the bottle, and the jinchūriki shook his head. "Why?"

Gaara shrugged. "I'm underage."

The daimyō leaned backwards, nodding to himself. "You're old enough to kill yet you're not old enough to drink. Doesn't it strike you as... odd?"

The redhead shrugged again, being apparently indifferent to the topic, and daimyō felt like a fool. Here he was, asking strange questions, and his bodyguard didn't seem to give a damn.

"Well, to the business then.I'm asking you as an assassin. If it's possible to kill ten people in the middle of the city so anyone wouldn't notice?"

Gaara didn't even move but the air around him became certainly different. "Yes."

The daimyō waited. Gaara was silent at first but then he apparently realized he was expected to elaborate.

"There are at least a few skilled ninjas who could do that," the redhead added.

The daimyō let out a small sigh. He hated drawing answers from Gaara, word by word. Well, at least he hated doing that at times during which he needed an elaborate explanation, because generally he appreciated Gaara's reticence.

"Could  _you_  do that?"the ruler inquired, trying to determine the level of skills required to commit such an act.

Gaara looked slightly offended, pursing his thin, pale lips. The daimyō held his gaze, as if challenging his pet jinchūriki to put what the boy was thinking into words. Naturally, Gaara resisted.

"You could," the ruler muttered quite negligently.

" _Of course_  I could," Gaara drawled with a scowl.

"But you didn't do that,  _of course_ ," the daimyō threw in, irritated with the brat's attitude.

The question, or comment rather, was meant to aggravate the boy but in itself it should have been rather insignificant and harmless. At least that was what daimyō had thought before he saw  _it_. Blinking, he straightened in his seat, attempting to determine what  _it_  had been. It had been a shift - a ripple on the calm surface - a fleeting shadow. Just something that had come suddenly, and been gone within a blink of an eye.

The boy shook his red head slowly.

"I didn't."

The daimyō leaned forward slightly, frowning. He wanted to catch the feeble, momentary feeling but it had been gone. The boy tilted his head if ever so slightly, his gaze scrutinizing, and daimyō slumped into his seat with a small huff. He was too flustered by mysterious disappearance of his guards commander, he thought, because he apparently started seeing things.

Suddenly, Gaara spoke. "Has my lord ever thought that Kanryū might have been a spy?"

The daimyō had been startled at first. It was unusual that Gaara would share his thoughts with himwithout being inquired, thoughts about Kanryū in particular. Then the question sank in, and daimyō frowned, curling his lip."A spy? Kanryū? What makes you think so?"

Gaara's answer was quite short. "The girl."

The daimyō rolled the cup between his fingers, his eyes away from Gaara's gaze. The older man had planned before to bring the girl into the conversation although he hadn't expected this particular topic to come up in such manner.

"You don't seem to be bothered by her disappearance," daimyō remarked, unwilling to dig further into chances of Kanryū being a spy. He had to determine first if the possibility was worthy of considering it at all.

"She was just a girl," Gaara scolded. He sounded like he wanted to roll his eyes. "And if she really was a spy, either she killed Kanryū and his men or they fled together because it had come too close to blowing their cover."

The daimyō nodded slowly, the streak of memories flowing in his mind. He could barely remember the girl's average face let alone her less than considerable assets from the first time he had seen her, but he clearly remembered what happened afterwards.

"Yes..." the older man said, very slowly, thoughtfully. He put the index finger to his mouth, as if trying to prevent the words from escaping. He was very much aware of the narrow, aqua eyes, watching his every move, every twitch of his brow, every quiver of his lips. "Yes, you might be right... However..." The daimyō trailed off. He winced painfully, tilting his head back and screwing his eyes shut. "Whatever happened there remains a mystery, giving me a massive migraine," he whined grumpily with a glance at his young bodyguard. The boy didn't take a hint though so the older man shooed him away with a dismissive wave of his hand. Gaara leaned forward momentarily, scowling, before he retreated. When the door shut quietly and the daimyō was alone again, he thought that he certainly didn't expect  _that_  although he couldn't tell what he actually thought when he had invited his bodyguard to the room before.

**The end of the chapter 57.**

**The next chapter:** **Out**


	57. Out

**The Longest Road**

**o0o0o0o**

**~Chapter 58. Out~**

Matsuri scratched her left wrist until her skin broke. The small beads of blood appeared on the irritated flesh but the loathsome sand bracelet remained stuck to her hand. The girl presumed that it would be gone after she would be away from the monster, beyond the reach of his powers. He simply made certain that he would know if she left the city. The brunette didn't know much of the range of his evil abilities but it was obvious that he controlled the sand on her from a distance. Maybe he was somewhere not so far from where she was, watching. Enjoying another sick game of his. Waiting for her to be discovered and dragged back to where she was taken from.

Matsuri sobbed but her eyes were dry. The sobs subsided almost instantly, leaving her chest tightened. She had lost control over her life so long ago that she could barely remember how it felt to be free. Now she could only cower and shake and rock forth and back, like a lamb in front of the slaughterhouse. All determination, and even hatred, was lost, washed away by the blood on her hands.

The voices outside grew louder, and she stiffened instinctively. The young man she had seen before popped his head inside, and their eyes met. Matsuri turned her head away quickly, drawing her knees up. Only then she put her forehead against them, shooting glimpses at the stranger through her matted fringe. He didn't look unfriendly, quite the opposite, but in such circumstances she couldn't expect him being anything but shocked and wary. He didn't call the guards though, at least not yet, and Matsuri would have hoped for something good to happen to her at last if she hadn't lost all hope before.

The man moved back, and the new male face appeared in the gap. It looked alike butolder, and Matsuri guessed the two were a father and a son. The older man climbed inside, and handed her a small bottle, showing her to drink. Matsuri was reluctant at first, mostly because her stiff limbs refused to work properly. The sound of the liquid lapping inside made her realize her thirst though, and she reached for the bottle clumsily. It was uncapped, and the girl poured a little onto her palm. Apparently, it was water. Matsuri licked it hesitantly before her lips locked around the bottleneck, and she drew in a few long gulps. Her empty stomach protested with a painful rumble, and she bent, drawing her knees up against her chest and pressing her forearm against her belly, her other hand gripping the bottle tightly. Her forehead resting against her knees, Matsuri waited until the pain subsided. Only then she realized her eyelids were heavy beyond imagination. Her head was heavy too, growing even heavier with every passing second. Soon Matsuri's consciousness was shut, and she drifted through the dreamless void until the drug's effects wore off.

Recovery was highly unpleasant. Her insides burned and her mouth was drier than the desert. She tried to raise her head, to no avail. She moved her fingers, groping around desperately. She vaguely remembered she had been given the water, and she didn't even care that the water had been seasoned with a soporific. She needed hydration so badly that she would even drink a sea water if available.

Finally, her surroundings came into focus. On her right, there was a wagon, casting a long shadow over her. On her left, two men she had seen before were sitting, obviously waiting for her to wake up. Far behind them she could see the line of yellow dunes, and above her, there was a faded desert sky.

She was out.

**The end of the chapter 5** **8** **.**

**The next chapter:** **A gift**


	58. A gift

**The Longest Road**

**o0o0o0o**

**~Chapter 59. A gift~**

The daimyō had been at the meeting for quite a long time but when he left it was obvious he was highly frustrated with a lack of progress of the investigation. Gaara followed him quietly, not particularly disturbed by his master's muttered words about everyone's incompetence. Of course the daimyō was aware he was being unfair, but he simply needed to get the frustration out of his system.

Gaara was calm and silent, treading slowly behind daimyō's back. He was mentally preparing himself for more rants and fits coming because he was aware, of course, that there was no way anyone could get to know what happened to Kanryū. The daimyō's mood would only grow worse, and Gaara, being as bad-tempered as he was, needed some extra persuasion from himself into not killing the ruler immediately.

At first, Gaara had been planning to impersonate Kanryū in order to confuse daimyō and destroy his reign from the inside. After the redhead felt his reserves of chakra going thin, he had to abandon the plan to save as much of the energy as he could. And after he discovered that the seal keeping Shukaku inside him was weakening, he decided to change the course of his not so carefully thought out actions.

The investigators would fail no matter how good they were unless they would be able to find the girl. Gaara didn't actually know if he wanted her to be brought back so he could deliver a final blow to her and prevent the story of Kanryū's death from being revealed - or if he wanted her to carry what he had done to her somewhere far away, somewhere even he didn't know about. He had learned to read the girl easily before, and he was certain she would wallow in the sense of guilt and self-pity until everyone would turn on her, not knowing the real reasons behind her attitude. And then, she would go mad, and search revenge. The real revenge this time, and not on him, but on the entire world.

If he was able to regret, he would do just that: regret that be wasn't able to see the person she would turn into. Eyes cold, calculating, unyielding, relentless, as her devastated soul would shine through them with the unholy, deadly sort of light. Or maybe there would be no light in her eyes - only darkness. The darkness that would grow with every next person she would kill; and he was absolutely certain that she would kill again. The first killing was always the hardest but he made that easier for her, unburdening her the initial sense of guilt. He was sure she would reason to herself that he made her do that, thus he was the actual perpetrator. In which she would be absolutely right. But a human heart was a very strange device. It wouldn't listen to the logic even if the said human's life depended on it. And so, Gaara knew the girl would accept at least a part of guilt as her own, and chastise herself for it. Most likely, she would absolutely hate herself, even if she had actually had no choice at the time she committed her first crime.

 _F_ _ool_ , Gaara thought to himself. Until one wasn't capable to control their own emotions perfectly to the point of being able to shut them down completely, they were fools, easy to manipulate, easy to play with. But the girl would learn. Oh, she certainly would. He saw it in her. She would accept her fate just as he did. The fate leading to destruction, and loneliness, and death. There was no other fate for human beings. They deceived themselves, believing in such pathetic, superficial things like easing the solitude with other's presence. But Gaara knew now that one was born alone and died alone. That was why people were always terrified while seeing him. Because his existence forced them to see the truth they always refused to accept.

Actually, what he had given to the girl was a gift. In her pathetic state, she would have never been able to take the revenge she wanted. He pushed her in the right direction. He allowed her to hate him. He endured her hate in order to make her realize the one and only true fate of all people. Not that she would ever believe that. She would always detest him but he was okay with it. He was planning to kill her some day after all.

**The end of the chapter 59.**

**The next chapter: The long-term plan**


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